


A Different, Better Timeline

by iwishiwaskidding



Category: Total Drama (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Competition Fic but not really, F/M, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-16
Updated: 2019-12-27
Packaged: 2020-01-15 02:50:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 125,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18489790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwishiwaskidding/pseuds/iwishiwaskidding
Summary: What if Courtney doesn't get eliminated during Basic Straining? What then?Canon divergent after Basic Straining, but things are already a little different.





	1. A Decent Proposal

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, welcome to my fic. This isn't quite a competition fic, but it takes place during Total Drama Island, and campers are going to get eliminated every episode/chapter. It doesn't focus as much on the challenges but more on the friendships and relationships formed throughout the season. It starts at the end of Phobia Factor because I wanted to set some background work before we get to the big change. Generally speaking, things are the same until Basic Straining.

“It’s not my fault,” Tyler stubbornly repeated for the fourth time, “chickens are terrifying.”

Bridgette shook her head, “no, Tyler, chickens are not terrifying, and all you had to do was sit in the same pen as one for five minutes!”

“Whatever, it’s not like you were able to finish your challenge either,” Tyler spit back, “and what excuse does Geoff have? All he had to do was stand under the hail cloud for five minutes. Same as me!”

“Hail is totally scary though, dude, it can bruise you,” Geoff argued, “not like chickens, which are, like, the chilliest birds of all time.”

Tyler thought for a moment before making his next statement, “oh, give me a break, Geoff. You just had to sit there. I actually had to touch a chicken.”

“Guys, can you please stop arguing about this? We all messed up. This isn’t helping anything,” Harold was trying his best to keep the peace, but it was becoming increasingly more difficult as the fight went on.

The Killer Bass had been at this for the past twenty minutes. It was everyone and no one’s fault that they had lost the challenge, and, because of this, their argument had begun to resemble a broken record.

Bridgette and Geoff couldn’t believe Tyler couldn’t sit in pen with a chicken for five whole minutes, Tyler was holding on to his defense that chickens were evil, and Harold wanted to keep the peace, but his own failure kept being thrown in his face. DJ, Duncan, and Sadie weren’t helping matters; the three of them seemed to have an unspoken agreement to let the four losers hash it out. They were going to vote for who they wanted to vote for.

And then, there was the empty spot at the table: the spot where Courtney should be but wasn’t. Since the challenge had ended, none of the Killer Bass had seen their resident CIT, but they all knew where she was. Courtney was in the confessional cam, crying her heart out. No one had brought her up yet, it felt like bad form when she wasn’t there to defend herself.

“Shut up, Harold,” Bridgette said, “you knocked yourself out before you even knew what your challenge was going to be!”

This whole argument, of course, was overlooking the fact that only three of the eight Killer Bass managed to pass their challenge, and that all five losers would have had to face their fear to beat the Screaming Gopher’s seven. That didn’t seem to matter to anyone.

Harold looked down at his lap, “you’re right, Bridgette, I reacted too soon. I apologize.”

“What about Courtney?” Tyler suggested, throwing all caution to the wind. He knew it was a gamble to bring her up, but they couldn’t ignore the hole in the conversation forever. For the first time since dinner started, there was a lull in the conversation. Tyler took this as an invitation to explain his thought, “I mean, she could have won us triple points just for jumping into that green jelly. We would have won.”

Tyler looked around at his teammates and quickly realized that maybe he should have kept this argument to himself. There was a fire in Bridgette’s eyes that wasn’t there before, and Duncan looked ready throw the athlete off the island himself. Harold audibly took in a reactionary breath. DJ and Geoff looked amused, like they knew all hell was about to break loose. Sadie was confused.

Things were quiet for moment longer. Then, “No. No, you do not get to say that,” Bridgette spit out. Meanwhile, Duncan rose to his feet, said something about needing air, and pulled DJ outside with him.

Tyler had enough sense to not argue back this time, but Bridgette kept going, “Courtney did her best today. Maybe she failed to perform, but so did you, so did I, so did most of us! If we would have managed to face our fears she wouldn’t have even been put in that position!”

“Okay, I get it, sorry Bridgette,” Tyler tried to apologize, but the surfer girl wasn’t finished yet.

“No! You don’t get it! Courtney is better than all of us. Maybe she has a backwards way of doing it, but she’s the one who’s been leading this team since day one,” Bridgette took a much-needed breath, “so, she screwed up. We all did. And what are we doing about it? Arguing like children about who deserves to go home! Well, it’s definitely not Courtney! What’s she doing right now? Crying her eyes out in the confessional.”

Things were quiet for a full two minutes. Harold and Sadie exchanged a look of surprise, not believing what had just come out of their sweet granola goddess’ mouth. Geoff had a proud expression on his face. Since the arguing began he knew it was just a matter of time before Bridgette lost it. Tyler opened his mouth to say something, but Bridgette shook her head at him and got up, “You should be ashamed of yourself, Tyler. We all should. I’m going to check on Courtney,” and with that she left. Geoff quickly got up and followed her out.

Meanwhile, Duncan pulled DJ across camp. On the short walk over to the cabin, Duncan kept muttering about how annoying everyone was being and how there was no way Courtney would be the one leaving. DJ just kept his mouth shut, trying hard not to giggle. It was funny any time Duncan got worked up over anything, especially when it had to do with Courtney.

Once the two of them reached the cabin, they stopped at the porch and sat on the steps. Neither of them said anything for a minute. Instead, they opted to enjoy the first bit of quiet they’ve had since before the challenge started.

Finally, Duncan broke the silence, “sorry, man,” he apologized with a constrained voice, “I had to get out of there. Everyone was being so annoying.”

“No worries, I understand,” DJ said, giving his friend a smile, “hard not to get mad when someone suggests we vote of your girl.”

Duncan rolled his eyes but decided to let it go. There was no point in arguing, especially after he let his dumb crush slip to Geoff and DJ after the talent challenge. It had become a joke among the two of them, don’t get between Duncan and his girl. Usually, the delinquent would try to put a stop to it, but this time there were more pressing matters to attend to.

“Yeah, and what about it?” Duncan asked, trying to keep it casual. Then, before giving DJ a chance to answer, he moved on, “let’s form an alliance.”

DJ shrugged, assuming that was not the end of the pitch. Even though Duncan wanted to give off the impression that he rolled with the punches, he always thought things through to painstaking detail, “tell me about it.”

Duncan eagerly obliged, “five person power alliance. You, me, Geoff, Courtney, Bridgette. We’re all good enough friends, I guess, and we all perform well in challenges. Five gives us the ability to get rid of the rest of our team pre-merge, and gives us a fighting chance post-merge, if we stick together. What do you say?”

“’Course, man,” DJ quickly accepted, “we’ll be unstoppable! Think the other’ll be into it?”

Duncan grinned and pointed to the mess hall door. Bridgette had just stormed out, and Geoff was hot on her heels, “go get them and find out.”

DJ ran to catch up with his teammates and heard Bridgette muttering about how she couldn’t believe that just happened and how Tyler should be ashamed of himself. He smiled to himself before interrupting the surfer girl’s tirade, “Hey Bridgette. Geoff. Can we talk to y’all for a moment?” He motioned over to where Duncan was sitting, “we have a proposition for you.”

This caused Geoff to stop, but Bridgette was kept going, “Sorry, DJ. In a moment. I’m going to check on Courtney. Take Geoff, and I’ll join you in a minute.”

“Sorry, Bridge,” DJ grabbed her wrist and walked with her, leaving Geoff behind, “but I think this might help with Courtney, now come on.”

Bridgette thought for a second, but ultimately decided that whatever it was DJ and Duncan had to tell her could wait. “I’m going, DJ. Please let go of my wrist so that I can check on Courtney. I haven’t seen her since the challenge ended.”

“Fine,” DJ dropped her wrist and whispered, “but I’d think you’d want to know about a potential alliance!”

Finally, he had gotten her attention. She stopped walking, turned to face him, and crossed her arms, “well, let’s hear it, DJ. Let’s hear about this alliance that I must know about before checking on Courtney. You’ve got two minutes.”

“Uhm, I’m going to need you to come with me, Bridge,” DJ tried, but, judging by the look on the girl’s face, she wasn’t going anywhere. “Fine, we can stay here,” he motioned over Geoff and called out to Duncan.

Once Duncan had made his way over to the three of them, Bridgette demanded to know what was going on, “DJ said something about an alliance.” Geoff, who hadn’t heard DJ mention the alliance, let out an interested, “what?” that went ignored by his teammates.

Duncan rolled his eyes at the pair, “did he?”

“Uhm, Dunc, man, I think you better get to the point,” DJ advised, while Bridgette placed a hand on her hip, and ordered, “you have thirty seconds. Tell me what’s going on.”

“Fine, Malibu. You heard right. I was thinking a five person majority alliance. The four of us and Courtney. What do you say? And Geoff?” Geoff answered, “yes,” before Duncan was able to even get his question out. Bridgette just sighed and nodded.

Duncan grinned a celebratory grin, “great. Now I just have to ask Courtney, and we’ll be all official.” DJ had to bite his lip to keep from laughing and Geoff grimaced at Duncan’s innocent mistake.

“No, you’re not,” Bridgette challenged, while walking away, “I’m checking on her now. I’ll tell her, okay. Just go back to the cabins, boys. Oh, and by the way, we’re voting Tyler.”

“Whatever, Malibu,” Duncan called after her, “just bring her back when you’re done. I wanna have a meeting before the marshmallow ceremony.”

Courtney sat in the confession, letting the tears roll down her face “I just, I failed,” she said between sobs, “I failed my team, and I deserve to go home. They’re not going to want to keep me here.”

She was silent for a moment before letting out a breath, “there’s no way I’ll be able to convince them to keep me,” she let out a watery laugh, “I don’t think I’ll even be able to convince myself to keep me!”

A knock brought Courtney out of her pity party. Who was bothering her? Before she had a chance to voice that sentiment she heard Bridgette’s soft voice pleading with her to open the door. Figuring her friend wasn’t there to ridicule her, Courtney opened the door but remained in the confessional.

“What do you need, Bridgette?” Courtney asked, “is everything okay?”

Bridgette would have laughed at Courtney’s instinct to make sure everyone else was fine if it had not been for the tears streaming down her face. Instead, she opted for a smile, grabbed Courtney’s hand, and pulled her out of the confessional, “let’s get out of here and find somewhere a little nicer to talk.”

Courtney didn’t know what was going on, but she trusted Bridgette enough that nothing bad was going to happen. They walked past the dining hall and the cabins. She saw DJ, Duncan, and Geoff watching them walk across camp, and she was grateful that everyone else seemed to be inside the dining hall. The less people to see her like this the better.

When they reached the arts and crafts tent, which seemed to be their final destination, Bridgette motioned to the CIT to go inside, and pulled her into a tight hug. Courtney relaxed into her friend’s embrace, buried her head in the blonde’s shoulder, and let herself cry. If it were anyone else she’d be embarrassed, but Bridgette had the ability to make almost anyone feel safe. The two of them remained like that for about ninety seconds before Courtney pulled back and apologized.

“I’m so sorry, Bridgette,” Courtney wiped a tear from her eye, “I let everyone down.”

“No! Court, I promise, you didn’t!” Bridgette reassured her friend, grabbing and squeezing her hand, “we were down by so much. A lot of us failed. I know I did.”

Courtney shook her head, “yes I did! I could have won us triple points. And now you guys are going to send me home!”

“Do not say that,” Bridgette ordered with a conviction Courtney hadn’t heard from her before, “you are not going anywhere.”

“Of course I’m going somewhere! Maybe you’re not going to vote for me, but everyone else will! Nobody on this team even likes me that much!” The CIT insisted, covering her face with her free hand.

Bridgette accidently let out a chuckle at that, “if no one even likes you that much then why am I here with an invitation to join a majority alliance?”

“What?” Courtney’s head shot up, “an alliance? No way! With who? No one’s going to want to save me! Whose idea was this?” Once again, Bridgette laughed, and wasted no time answering her friend’s rapid questions, “yes, an alliance. You, me, DJ, Duncan, Geoff. I don’t know, I think Duncan’s but maybe DJ’s.”

These answered posed a whole new set of questions, “I don’t understand. Why would those boys want to work with me? Also, who are we voting for?”

Bridgette laughed at Courtney’s question, which earned her an annoyed look. It was rather obvious to the surfer why Duncan wanted to work with Courtney. His subtlety left a lot to be desired. Instead of telling her this, Bridgette just shrugged, “I don’t know. Maybe they think you’re a good competitor. Maybe they like you. And Tyler. So are you in?”

“Sure,” Courtney answered, shrugging. An alliance certainly wouldn’t hurt anything. And if it kept her safe tonight? Sign her up. “But why Tyler? Why not Harold? Neither of them are very useful.”

Bridgette looked to the ground in embarrassment, “I may have told Tyler off at dinner.”

“Why? What happened?” Courtney couldn’t imagine Bridgette telling off a fly, let alone Tyler.

“Let’s just say that things were heated, and Tyler made a suggestion that I wasn’t too fond off,” Bridgette sheepishly answered, “he wanted us to voted you off, and I kind of lost it on him. Not my proudest moment.”

Courtney couldn’t believe it. No one had ever stuck up for her in that way before and it made her heart swell with gratitude. She pulled a surprised Bridgette into another hug, “thanks,” she whispered, “that means a lot.”

“No problem,” Bridgette whispered back, “that’s what friends are for.”

Pulling away, Courtney gave her friend a soft smile. Then, there was a knock on the door. The two girls shared a confused look, no one ever came to the arts and crafts tent except them. Bridgette just shrugged and moved to look out the window on the door. Peering out, she saw all three of their new alliance mates.

“It’s the guys,” Bridgette informed Courtney, “Duncan said something about having a meeting earlier, guess he got tired of waiting. I’m going to let them in.”

Courtney nodded, “sure.” She assumed the five of them would have to talk about this alliance at some point before the marshmallow ceremony tonight.

After opening the door, Bridgette stepped aside to let the guys enter. Duncan brushed past the surfer to Courtney and stopped in front of her, not leaving much space between their bodies.

“Are you in?” he asked, trying his best to mask his hopefulness with a layer of indifference. Courtney gave him a slight nod, which caused him to break his façade and give her a quick hug and a genuine smile, “good.”

Then, Duncan pulled away and took a few steps back so that he could addressed the group, “it’s official, we have ourselves an alliance!”

“Yeah, dude!” Geoff exclaimed while DJ let out a loud, “nice!” Courtney and Bridgette just shared an amused looked, neither could say that this would be boring.

“I know, I know,” Duncan continued, “we’re all excited. But we’ve gotta get to the important stuff, like how this is all going to work. We can’t just form an alliance. We have to work together as a group.” He took a breath and gave a certain CIT a joking smirk, “that means you, Princess. We work together. Can’t boss us all around.”

Courtney scoffed, like she couldn’t believe he was calling her out for being commanding, “whatever, Duncan. I can be a team player.”  

“Whatever you say,” he said before moving on, “there’s no way the five of us aren’t making it to the merge, and, if we stick together, we can dominate to the end game. That means we have to decide as a group who were going to vote off. We have to consider all our options, we can’t get rid of people too early or too late.”

While Duncan continued explaining the importance of strategy, all of his new alliance mates, save Courtney, zoned him out. Sure, this alliance was new and exciting, but that stuff didn’t matter right now! Why couldn’t they just hang out and have fun and not talk this to death?

Bridgette caught Geoff’s eye causing the party animal to pretend to gag himself. The surfer let out a giggle at that, while DJ just shook his head and smiled at the pair. Duncan and Courtney remained oblivious to their antics. Then, the delinquent pulled them back into focus by asking, “that good with everyone?”

“Of course!” Courtney answered while DJ, Geoff, and Bridgette all made panicked eye contact. What had Duncan asked? “He can’t get away with trying to vote me off!” Ah, it must have been about a Tyler elimination.

“I agree,” Bridgette added, hoping she was on the same page, “Tyler has to go. Especially since I kinda lost it on him.”

Duncan shot Bridgette a confused yet amused look, “you lost it on Tyler?” Her and Geoff nodded, and the delinquent let out a long groan, “maaaan, wish I could have been there to see it!”

Bridgette smiled, “guess you’ll have to stick around next time.”

Meanwhile, Tyler was preparing for his own meeting at the dock. He knew it was probably him who was going to be eliminated tonight, and he wanted to say bye to Lindsay. While waiting for her, he reflected on the disastrous dinner and his part in it. In hindsight he knew it was a bad idea to even bring Courtney up in the first place. She had been the Killer Bass’ makeshift leader since at least the dodgeball challenge, and he knew both Bridgette and Duncan had grown attached to her in a way where they would never vote her out. And then, with those two’s sway over DJ and Geoff, it was never going to happen. He knew that even though there was probably no way he could have completely prevented his elimination, there was chance that if he hadn’t pushed so hard and waited it out that Harold could have been the one going home tonight.

“Hi, Tyler,” Lindsay greeted as she sat down next to him.

Tyler wrapped his arm around her and gave her a sad smile, “hey, Linds.”

Noticing her boyfriend’s uncharacteristically sad expression, Lindsay furrowed her eyebrows together and touched his face, “what’s wrong?”

Tyler closed his eyes. He didn’t want to have to tell her he was going tonight, but he had to. It wouldn’t be fair to her if he knew he was going and didn’t tell her. Taking a deep breath, Tyler broke the news, “I’m probably going to be voted off tonight.”

“What?” Lindsay asked, her voice full of shock, “why?”

“I failed my challenge then pissed everyone off,” Tyler explained, “I thought maybe we should get rid of Courtney, and I stupidly suggested it.”

Lindsay leaned away from him and placed a hand over her mouth. Even though she wasn’t the brightest girl, she knew the Killer Bass was Courtney’s team. Also, neither Bridgette nor Duncan would ever vote off the CIT, and she thought Tyler knew that.

“I can’t believe you did that, Tyler,” Lindsay admonished, “you know that Duncan totally likes her and that her and Bridgette are, like, best girl friends on this island!”

“I know,” Tyler agreed, “I made a mistake. Bridgette even yelled at me.”

Lindsay had to laugh at Tyler’s pouting expression. He was so cute, she couldn’t help it. She also had heard the surfer going off about something at dinner, but she hadn’t known what it was about. It had been funny at the moment, and it was funny now. Tyler always said that Bridgette was the nicest person on his team, and the thought of her getting so worked up about anything was amusing.

“I’m sorry, babe,” Lindsay said between giggles, “is there anything I can do to help you feel better?” She had a few ideas.

Tyler, it seemed, had the same ideas. His face lit up hilariously quickly as he furiously nodded his head, “yeah, babe. Wanna give me some goodbye kisses?”

“Hmmm,” Lindsay hummed, pretending to think it over. Then, she gave Tyler a big smiled and pulled his face to hers. “Of course,” she whispered before kissing him.

The kissing went on for several minutes, during which time Tyler managed to pull Lindsay completely onto his lap to where she was straddling him. Then, he laid down on his back, pulling her on top of him. After a few minutes of this, she rolled off him and grabbed his hand. The mood suddenly got sullen.

“I’m going to miss you,” Lindsay whined, “are you sure it’s going to be you?”

Tyler nodded, “I’m almost positive, sorry.” He was quiet for a moment, then, “I’m going to miss you, too, babe. Promise not to forget me?”

“Of course not!” Lindsay exclaimed, as if that was the stupidest question in the world, “I could never forget you, Tyler!”

Good,” he smiled at her, “wanna kiss some more?”

Lindsay returned his smile, “oh, yes.”


	2. The Pain of a Splinter

_I hope you think you me whenever you drop loose change into this_.

Geoff was pleased with his work. He had been making this gift for Bridgette since the last elimination ceremony, painstakingly gluing macaroni around the heart shaped framed and using his best photoshop skills to create a photo of the two of them together. There was no way she wouldn’t love it!

Checking his watch, Geoff saw he only had a few minutes to deposit this gift on Bridgette’s bed before breakfast ended. He had to get going if he wanted to surprise her before the challenge. He grabbed the gift and raced through camp. After sufficiently checking that the coast was clear, he entered the girls’ cabin and walked up to what he assumed was Bridgette’s bed. He placed the gift under her covers and went to wait on the porch.

Across camp, he saw Bridgette and DJ walking to the cabin together, whispering about something. As they made their way up the steps, Geoff greeted them, “Hey, Bridge. Deej. How was breakfast?”

The two of them shared a look of exasperation, and Bridgette sighed before answering, “Courtney and Duncan got in a fight.”

Geoff couldn’t help but chuckle, as Courtney and Duncan fought often. Their fights could be about anything, ranging from “why are you so allergic to fun?” to “why are you touching me right now?” to “this team is crumbling, and it’s all your fault.” It was as annoying as it was amusing. “What’s it about this time, dudes?”

“Not entirely sure, man,” DJ said, “I think he called her ‘Princess’ again.”

Bridgette nodded, confirming this story, “it’s still going on. I think they forgot we were there, so we left. Anyway, where were you this morning, Geoff? We missed you!”

Geoff smiled at her, “I was in the arts and crafts tent! Making something for a special someone!”

DJ laughed, knowing that this was only going to end up poorly for his friend. Bridgette chewed the inside of her check and looked down, “sure,” she said to herself. She didn’t like the way Geoff was smiling. It told her something was up, and the stuff Geoff thought up usually didn’t end well for either of them.

“Okay,” Bridgette said, looking at the boys again, “well, if you’ll excuse me, I have something I need to do in the cabin before the challenge starts.” She waved to the two of them and entered her cabin, hoping that whatever Geoff was talking about wasn’t as bad as she thought it might be.

The campers finished their morning routines and met at the beach for the briefing. The challenge didn’t sound too hard: canoe across the lake, hike around an island, and start a fire. It would take a lot to mess that up, and both the Killer Bass and Screaming Gophers were confident in their abilities.

After Chris sent the campers on their ways, likely and unlikely pairs came together for the canoeing portion of the challenge. On the Killer Bass side, Bridgette quickly claimed Courtney, leaving Geoff to find his solace with DJ. Sadie and Harold paired up on the basis that they were the only two left and were surprised when Duncan forced himself into their canoe. Duncan knew the logical choice would have been to pair up with Geoff and DJ, but he didn’t want the three of them to be seen as a unit.

Lindsay and Beth formed the Screaming Gophers’ first canoe, and, in order to have some time away from Heather, they pulled Trent in to form a trio. Cody used this to his advantage and made sure that Gwen would be going along with him. Looking at her choices, Leshawna figured that Izzy would be her safest bet. She wasn’t too keen on spending any time at all with Heather and was getting tired of Owen. This left the two of them, much to Heather’s annoyance and Owen’s misplaced excitement. Once in the water, these pairs and trios fill the lake with various conversations.

“It was horrible, Courtney,” Bridgette exclaimed for what seemed to be the hundredth time, “I mean, he glued macaroni around the edges! I haven’t made macaroni art since at least the second grade. He knows he’s sixteen, right?”

“Yes, it all sounds rather juvenile,” Courtney replied. She was tired of this conversation. It was obvious that Bridgette had a thing for Geoff, but that his chronic foot in mouth disease made it difficult for the surfer to want to do anything about it. Courtney could only hope that the two of them would resolve whatever this was soon so that everyone could move on to different things, “but I think we’ve beat this topic to death. Let’s talk about something else.”

Shoot, Bridgette thought. She hadn’t realized that she had been monopolizing the conversation, “you’re right. Something else,” she thought for a moment, and then she had it! Courtney must want to talk about her boy troubles, “so, Duncan?”

Courtney closed her eyes for a long moment, this wasn’t what she had in mind when she said something else, “what about him,” she said, more as a statement than a question.

“You know, that fight the two of you had this morning. Doing okay?”

Courtney shook her head. Why wouldn’t she be okay? Bridgette sounded concerned, but this concern was unfounded, “why wouldn’t I be okay? I got in a fight with a teammate. A teammate I don’t even particularly like.”

“Yeah, but it went on pretty long. And I know he likes you,” Courtney started coughing, and Bridgette used this time to continue her train of thought, “and you like him, right? So it makes sense that you could be upset after that fight.”

The coughing, which was obviously fake, went on for a minute longer before Courtney closed her eyes and took a deep breath, “Bridgette, how could you even ask that? Of course I don’t like him! And he doesn’t like me either, so if we could just move on to anything else, that’d be great. Why do we even have to talk about guys, anyway?”

Bridgette wanted to laugh, but she bit her tongue, not wanting to provoke the CIT further. Courtney’s tone of voice made it very clear that this wasn’t up for discussion, so she apologized and moved on, “right, you’re right. What would you like to talk about instead?”

Meanwhile, across the lake, an equally enlightening conversation was taking place in one Screaming Gophers canoes.

“So, what do you think about the Killer Bass?” asked Lindsay, her head resting in Trent’s lap.

“Uhm? I don’t know enough about them to answer that.” Was this why Beth and Lindsay strong armed him into their canoe? To find out what he thinks about the Killer Bass?

Beth giggled, “well maybe you should figure it out. The merge is going to happen at some point, and you have to know about all your competition. Not just those who were on your team.”

“Yeah!” Lindsay added, “it’s important to know about everyone! If you want, we could help you learn about them.”

Trent considered this. They had a point; he couldn’t go into the merge blind. He needed to know about the other team if he wanted to protect himself and Gwen. But wait, “how do you know about the other team?”

“Oh, Tyler used to tell me all about them!” Lindsay said excitedly, before sitting up and adopting an uncharacteristically somber expression, “Tyler. I miss him.”

Beth stopped paddling, turned to face her friend, and patted her on knee, “I know Linds, it’ll be okay. Tyler’d want you to be happy!”

Lindsay sniffed and wiped away a lone tear, “I know. It’s just so lonely without him! I wish he was still here.”

“I know. Just think happy thoughts!” Beth encouraged, “Like when you get to see him again! He’ll be so proud of you.”

Trent watched in annoyance as to what was folding out before him. Had they forgotten he was there? Or that they were in the middle of the challenge? Beth hadn’t resumed paddling yet, so he assumed they must have. After giving the two of them a moment, he cleared his throat to let them know he was still there.

“So, Lindsay, you were going to tell me about the Killer Bass?” he asked, hoping to stop her sadness.

This seemed to do the trick. Lindsay’s eyes lit up, and she started giving him the D-L, “Yeah! I totally was. Uhm, well, Courtney, you know her?” Trent nodded, “Yeah, well she’s the one that’s in charge over there. She’s like Heather. But nice!” Lindsay paused for a moment, “please don’t tell her I said that.”

“So, Courtney’s their leader, huh? Would’ve thought it was Duncan.”

Lindsay shook her head violently, “no, no, no! He doesn’t care enough to be in charge. Plus, he totally likes Courtney.”

Trent wasn’t sure what that had to do with anything, but he kept his mouth shut about it. If this was what kept Lindsay quiet about Tyler, then so be it. He’d rather know all the island gossip than be stuck trying to comfort a girl he didn’t know that well. “Good info, Lindsay. Anyone else?”

“Oh yeah. Courtney and Bridgette are totally best friend, like me and Beth. That’s what got Tyler voted out,” Lindsay frowned for a second, and Trent was scared this was going to turn back to her missing him. Luckily, she kept going, “anyway. Tyler suggested that they vote out Courtney, and Bridgette got so mad at him, right Beth?”

Beth nodded, “yeah! He told her that Bridgette yelled at him! Which is so weird because he always said that Bridgette was the nicest person on this entire island!”

“Interesting. We’ll have to break the two of them up.”

Lindsay chewed her lip, “I dunno, Trent. It’s dangerous to get between best girl friends. If you want to break someone up it should be Bridgette and Geoff! Because they totally like each other. Or Geoff and DJ and Duncan. Tyler said they always left him and Harold out of things.”

“What about Courtney and Duncan?” Trent asked, not believing that he was entertaining this glorified gossip session, “if they like each other shouldn’t we break them up, too?”

“No, no, no!” Lindsay quickly replied, “I said that Duncan likes Courtney, not that Courtney likes Duncan. As long as the two of them are on this island together they’ll bring each other down.”

“Yeah,” Beth added, “didn’t you hear their fight this morning?”

Trent didn’t answer for a minute, completely impressed with this information he was getting. He always pegged the two of them as not that smart, but they, Lindsay in particular, had a good eye for figuring out interpersonal relationships. Plus, a boyfriend on the other team couldn’t hurt.

By this point, however, the conversation had to end. They reached the beach of Boney Island, and it was time for the hard part to begin.

The Killer Bass, who had already been on the island for a few minutes, were already running down the beach. Geoff and DJ were leading the pack while Duncan, Harold, and Sadie were bringing up the rear. Courtney was shouting instructions from her and Bridgette’s place in the middle.

When Courtney believed they had a sufficient head start, she commanded her team to slow down, “we can’t run the whole way. We’ll deplete our energy. We should walk until the gophers catch up.”

This was a good plan, and the Killer Bass could see this. Therefore, they slowed to a walk and continued through the forest. The Screaming Gopher’s seemed to be far behind them, so there was no urgency in their steps. Eventually, they settled into a rhythm, moving in silence until they reached a fork in the path.

“Okay, so there are two paths,” Courtney thought out loud, “which one’s better?” She thought for a moment, examining her two choices. One of them had to better, but they looked the same to her. “Make up your mind, oh great leader,” Duncan goaded, so Courtney made a flash decision, “Left. Definitely left.”

Geoff, however, had noticed a difference between the two paths, “I don’t know, I think we should take the one on the right.”

“The right trail is wider,” Bridgette agreed before Courtney had a chance to argue. The CIT frowned but let Geoff lead the way. Geoff, pleased that Bridgette agreed with him, sent her an unsettling smile, “what are you looking at?”

When the Screaming Gophers finally caught up with them, they opted for the trail on the right. Because of this, Courtney ordered her team to start running again. They had no arguments.

All was going well until Geoff tripped over a log. He clutched his leg dramatically, “Ah, my leg! I’m doooown, I’m doooown!” Further, he dropped down to his back and began rolling around, “oh, it’s so unfair! Why did this have to happen now? Why, WHY?”

His teammates all dropped their canoes and gathered around him. Bridgette was the first to respond, “GEOFF!” she screamed while kneeling beside him.

“You’ve got to go on with out me!” Geoff dramatically stated.

Looking at the scene in front of her, Courtney decided that this was good enough for her. Geoff fell, that was it, and nothing looked out of sorts. If he was going to be a baby about this, then by all means she was okay with leaving him there. They didn’t need him slowing them down. She started walking away, but DJ quickly grabbed her arm, “we’re not leaving any man behind. Not on my watch.”

Courtney sighed. Geoff was still rolling around on the floor, DJ and Bridgette looked close to tears, and Harold and Sadie were visibly concerned, if not a little confused. Only Duncan seemed to be assessing this situation the same way she was, and that was never a good sign.

“Fine, DJ. We won’t go on without him, whatever you say,” she sarcastically agreed, “but we can’t just sit here. Geoff, come on, I know you can walk. Nothing looks broken or sprained or anything.”

Geoff considered this, “okay, Court. Anything for you. Bridge, DJ, can you guys help me up?” DJ ran over to where his friend was, and him and Bridgette pulled him up by the arms. The three of them took a step together before Geoff collapsed again, “no can do, dudette, hurts too much.”

Was this for real? “Fine, Geoff. Let me look at it. I was a CIT I’m first aid certified. I’ll be able to see what’s wrong, if anything!”

“Go for it, hope the news isn’t too bad, doctor Courtney.”

Courtney walked up to where Geoff was laying and motioned for DJ and Bridgette to scoot back. She grabbed his left leg and tenderly pressed her hand around it, feeling for any hardness or tenderness. After about a minute and no results, she broke the news to him, “as it turns out, Geoff, nothing’s wrong. You’re fine. Now let’s go before the Screaming Gophers beat us.”

“No can do.” Geoff argued, “hurts too much! Check it again.”

“Fine, fine,” Courtney conceded, “I’ll check one more time. But if nothing’s wrong I’m serious about leaving you here.” She checked again and still couldn’t find anything. However, upon gliding her hand across his calf, she felt a little thorn. Upon closer examination she found it was a splinter. This was a joke, right? “Well Geoff, you were right. Something is wrong,” she said sweetly before screwing up her face and yelling, “A SPLINTER. YOU HAVE A SPLINTER. Now get up so that we can get going!”

Geoff made no motion to get up. Instead, he let out the breath he had been holding, “it’s worse than I thought! A splinter! NOOOOOO! What did I ever do to deserve this!” Bridgette and DJ quickly returned to his side and started comforting him, and Harold and Sadie quietly whispered about how much this sucked. “You’ve got to go on without me,” he instructed once again.

“Never,” Bridgette vowed. DJ nodded his head, “yeah, never. We win as a team and we lose as a team. We’re not letting you go!”

What was happening? Everyone seemed to be losing their minds. Courtney looked at the camera man, “is this part of the challenge, Chris? Did you drug everyone on this team except for me?” Then, she addressed the group, “Geoff, it’s a splinter. Splinters don’t affect your ability to walk. Can you please get up for me?”

“I’m sorry, Court, I really wish I could. I’m just in so much pain right now.”

Courtney shook her head, dumbfounded, “You’re kidding me, right? We’re in the middle of a challenge! You’ll have to work through the pain or something!”

“Hey, now!” a new voice joined this conversation, “you can’t demand that of him, Princess, if the man says he’s in pain, then he’s in pain!”

Geoff wiped away a nonexistent tear, “thanks, Dunc, that means a lot to me,”

Duncan just rolled his eyes. Yes, he agreed with Courtney on this one. Geoff was being a baby, and if they lost the challenge it would be fully his fault, at least at this point. Still, he hadn’t pushed Courtney’s buttons at all this challenge, and that was making him itchy.

“Stay out of this, Duncan!” Courtney commanded. It was official, everyone on her team had lost it. “Crack,” she stated, “this whole team is on crack. That’s the only explanation.”

“Yes, that’s it,” Duncan deadpanned, “we’re all on crack, and we’ve decided to just throw this challenge. You’ve _cracked_ the code. Want a reward?”

Courtney threw her hands up in a gesture of confusion and annoyance, “you’ve all lost it. I’m going now. You can follow if you want, or not. I don’t care. But I want to win this challenge, and, if we lose, I will figure out a way to eliminate every single one of you. Got it?” and with that, she took off down the path.

The rest of the Killer Bass watched Courtney go, wanting to follow but not being able to move their legs. It was no denying that they were, as a whole, in the wrong for what had just happened. Sure, Geoff was hurt, and Courtney was unsympathetic, but she was also right. They were in the middle of the challenge, and they couldn’t stop it for anything, not even this.

Suddenly, DJ thought of a plan, “Guys,” he stated, and everyone’s eyes were on him. “Geoff, I’ve gotta ask one more time, can you walk?”

Geoff nodded, feeling bad. This was mostly his fault, “yeah I think. Help me up, Bridge?” The surfer helped Geoff to his feet, and he took a few steps, “I’m good, Deej. What’s the plan?”

“Depends, can you portage?” Geoff nodded, “great, then it doesn’t matter. Let’s just get going.”

As Bridgette moved to pick up her canoe, she ran into a problem, “uhm, can someone help me?” she asked, then motioned to her canoe, “I can’t carry this by myself.”

“No problem,” DJ answered, walking over to her, “Harold, Sadie, and Duncan have three. One of them will help you, okay?”

Bridgette nodded, “as long as I don’t have to do this on my own.”

“Don’t worry, you won’t have to,” DJ assured her. Then, he called over his shoulder, “Hey, Dunc, man, I need you.” Once the delinquent made his way over to the pair, DJ wasted no time explaining, “can you help Bridgette?”

“Course, man,” Duncan replied, “don’t worry about it.”

Glad that the issue was resolved, DJ nodded to himself and continued to instruct his team, “okay, we’re going to run. The Screaming Gophers probably have the lead now, and we need to catch up with them. And Courtney.”

The Killer Bass nodded and took off running down the path. No one said anything until they saw Courtney up ahead. The CIT didn’t seem to hear them approach, so DJ took it upon himself to yell at her to get out of the way. Once she registered that someone was shouting after her, she stopped and looked behind her. Seeing that her team was coming at her fast, Courtney’s eyes became comically large, and she jumped to the side of the path.

“Hey, Courtney,” DJ greeted, slowing him and Geoff to a stop. Thankfully, the other two portaging partners continued running.

Courtney regarded the pair with suspicion, “what’s all this?”

“Thought we’d help you win this challenge,” DJ replied, a slight smile on his lips, “hope that’s okay with you.”

Courtney returned his smile, “yes, of course. Thank you.”

“Great,” DJ answered, “run with us, we have a challenge to win!” Then, the three of them joined their team, Courtney running beside DJ and Geoff.

When they finally arrived at the beach it was no surprise to them that the Screaming Gophers were already working on their fire. Immediately, Courtney sprang into action, her eyes daring her teammates to argue, “okay, we can deal with this. Does anyone have any ideas?”

Duncan smiled, ready to save his team, and pulled his lighter out of his pocket, “will this do?”

“Yes!” Courtney exclaimed, throwing her arms around him, “yes, that’s perfect, Duncan!” Then, noticing her position, she cleared her throat, removed her arms, and took a few steps back.

Courtney and Duncan basked in their renewed lead and laughed at Heather’s complaints that using a lighter is totally cheating. Not their problem if none of the gophers carried one. The Killer Bass worked hard to grow their fire, finding all the dry sticks they could. After a few minutes, the Screaming Gophers got their fire started, and it was already bigger than theirs.

“I don’t think this is going to be big enough,” Courtney observed, so DJ instructed the Killer Bass to find more wood. In a moment of pure stupidity, Harold grabbed all the paddles and threw them into the fire. Right away, his teammates began to express their disbelief.

While dealing with Harold, the bass heard an explosion. They turned to the gophers and saw that Izzy had done… something. Chris announced the Screaming Gophers the winners and allowed both teams to canoe back to the main island.

Unfortunately, the Killer Bass didn’t have any paddles and were stuck trying to figure out how to get back. Then, Izzy gave them a great idea. Have someone push the canoes! That was genius. After figuring out the logistics, DJ stacked the canoes, and his teammates got situated inside. He pushed the canoes into the water and started kicking. Geoff took it upon himself to be the head cheerleader, chanting his name, while the rest of the bass clapped and cheered all the way to shore.

Once the Killer Bass hit shore they went flying and crashed on the beach. That didn’t matter, though, they had won the challenge! Chris walked over to where they were standing and officially crowned them the winner. The Screaming Gophers made it to shore a few seconds later, each of them blaming Izzy.

“We did it, team,” Courtney exclaimed, “we won. I knew we could do it!”

Duncan started laughing but didn’t say anything. This happened every time the Killer Bass won a challenge. Things would start going poorly, Courtney would freak out, and then, once they won, she would claim she knew it was going to happen. The joint laughter of Bridgette and DJ told him they agreed.

“Whatever, guys, laugh all you want,” Courtney pouted, “but I’m going back to the cabins now, if anyone wants to come with me.”

Courtney started walking toward the cabin, and Duncan quickly joined her, throwing his arm around her shoulder, “you know, Princess, that’s the second time you’ve walked away from us today. Some would say that means you don’t like us.”

The CIT rolled her eyes and shrugged his arm off, “don’t call me that.” Then, she addressed his accusation, “I like you guys plenty.”

“Sure about that?” Duncan asked with a smirk on his face, “because it didn’t look that way when you left us in the middle of that challenge.”

Once again, Courtney rolled her eyes. Then, she crossed her arms for good measure, “I was completely justified. You were all being so ridiculous. I had to get out of there for everyone’s good, especially mine.”

Duncan considered this. He could continue to play along, argue that she was crazy for leaving them there. Or, he could settle on what he knew both of them thought was true, that Geoff was being a bitch, and no one was helping matters, including himself. He settled on the latter, “I mean, you’re not wrong. Geoff was being a little bitch out there. He’s lucky we didn’t lose.”

“Damn right he is,” Courtney agreed, finally feeling validated, “I know we’re all in an alliance now, but I would have 100% voted for him, sorry.” Then, before he had a chance to reply, “wait, you don’t get to agree with me! You were part of all the craziness! You told me you were all on crack!”

Duncan laughed and threw his arm around Courtney again, “doesn’t mean I don’t agree with you, Princess. You’re just too easy to mess with. I had to.”

“No you didn’t,” Courtney complained, glaring at him. However, she didn’t shrug his arm off this time. “You don’t understand how completely exhausting that whole situation was for me. Everyone was treating me like I was some heartless monster for trying to win the challenge. It made me feel like shit, Duncan. And the worst part? I knew that I was absolutely correct in that Geoff was overreacting, but I couldn’t find any way to make everyone else see that. Everyone was ganging up me.”

By the time Courtney was done with her rant, she had stopped walking towards the cabin, leaving her and Duncan in the middle of camp. Duncan, to his credit, did manage an apologetic expression as he removed his arm from around her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Listen, Courtney,” Duncan started, trying to find the right words. He felt bad now that she laid it all out for him. Truthfully, he never liked a girl as much as he liked Courtney before now, and he was still figuring out how exactly he was supposed to navigate these waters. “I’m sorry we all made you feel that way. We’re the shitty ones, not you.”

“I know,” was all Courtney said before she marched the rest of the way to the cabin, leaving Duncan alone and confused.

“What just happened?” he asked himself, shaking his head. Then, he just shrugged and walked back to the cabin.

Meanwhile, Geoff and Bridgette were having a conversation on the beach.

After a few minutes of lighthearted banter, Bridgette got serious, “Geoff, I’m sorry, but I have to ask: what was your deal with the splinter earlier?”

Geoff had enough sense to look ashamed, “I don’t know, Bridge. I fell, and it hurt, and Courtney was being all Courtney, and then it didn’t hurt but everyone was being all weird and supportive, so I milked it. Probably was the wrong thing to do. Forgot we were in a challenge. Think Courtney’s mad?”

“Probably not, no.” Bridgette decided, after a few seconds of thinking about it, “at least not anymore. If we would have lost, though, she would have tried her hardest to overthrow this alliance and get us to vote you off.”

“Good thing we won, then,” Geoff smiled at Bridgette, then frowned, “I owe her an apology though, don’t I?”

Bridgette nodded, “we all do, I think. We all kind of lost it out there. She wasn’t wrong to walk away from us when she did. We weren’t doing her any favors.” Then, seeing that this topic had run its course, “your gift, Geoff. Not that I’m ungrateful, because I’m not. It was just a lot, and I wanted to know where you were coming from. I like the friendship we have, and I’m not ready for it to change.”

Geoff put his hand over his heart, “I know, I know. It was a bad idea, Deej already told me all about it. And, I dunno, I was thinking that you’re a super cool dudette. We’re in an alliance together now, and that’s cool. I wanted to show my appreciation. I like being friends with you, too.”

“Good,” Bridgette patted his knee and stood up, “I’m going to the cabin now. Walk me back?”

“Of course,” Geoff answered, standing up to join her, “let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that was Up the Creek. I hope you enjoyed it! And, once again, leave a kudos or a comment if you want!


	3. Half Confession, Full Confusion

Things were quiet in the girls’ Killer Bass’ cabin. All three of its inhabitants were sound asleep, their heads filled with sweet dreams. Then, all of a sudden, a loud noise filled the camp and woke the girls up.

Courtney was the first one to respond, her arm reaching out to the bedside table as she tried to turn off an alarm clock that wasn’t there. Bridgette was next, sitting up in her bed and rubbing her eyes, trying to make sense of what was happening. Finally, Sadie willed herself out of bed, groaning, and exited the cabin. The noise was still going on.

After about a minute of trying to shut off the nonexistent alarm clock, Courtney conceded, accepting the fact that the sound was out of her control. The CIT stretched her arms above her head as she sat up and asked, “what is that?”

Bridgette shrugged, “sounds like the helicopter.” Then, she pulled herself out of bed so that she could look out the window, and, sure enough, “it’s the helicopter.”

“Of course it is,” Courtney complained as she got out of bed and started digging around for some clothes, “why can’t he just wake us up like a normal human being? That thing is too loud.”

Before Bridgette had the chance to agree, Chris’ voice filled the camp, “ _HEY CAMPERS, HOPE YOU HAD A NICE WAKE UP CALL,”_ he snickered, “ _CHALLENGE STARTS IN FIFTEEN MINUTES AT THE FIREPIT_.”

“Fifteen minutes?” Courtney asked, forgetting their previous conversation, “that’s not enough time to get ready. When are we supposed to eat breakfast?”

Bridgette thought for a moment, “maybe it’s part of the challenge. It has to be, right? Like they have to feed us, right?”

Courtney nodded, “I’m pretty sure. Doesn’t matter. Let’s just get ready and go. We don’t want to be late.”

After twenty minutes, everyone was finally gathered at firepit. Chris took this time to explain the challenge and break the teams up into deer and hunters. He sent the deer into the woods first, telling them they better take advantage of this head start. Then, ten minutes late, he released the hunters so that the game could officially begin.

Once they were alone, two not-quite-dating gophers were taking some time to get to know each other better. Gwen and Trent walked closely, their arms were in constant contact, but they weren’t holding hands. After spending three hours talking about what their life was like off the island, the two of them settled into a comfortable silence, allowing themselves to just enjoy the time together.

Then, “so, Trent,” Gwen offered, smiling at the guy walking beside her. Trent smiled back, “so, Gwen.”

“How have things been going in the girls’ cabin?” Trent asked, wanting to find out about how Gwen was doing with Heather.

Gwen laughed, “I don’t know how to answer that. They’re… interesting, I guess. Lot quieter now that Izzy’s gone.”

It was Trent’s turn to laugh, “I bet. That girl was really something else, wasn’t she?”

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it. She was even battier on the off days,” Gwen shuddered, remembering a particularly rough incident, “I don’t want to know where Chris found her. How are things in the guys’ cabin?”

“Pretty cool,” Trent replied, “things are pretty chill. Owen and Cody are both nice guys. Sure, Owen can be a little loud, but he’s a lot of fun. And yeah, Cody thinks he’s cooler than he really is,” Gwen made a sound, indicating that she agreed with him fully there, “but he’s actually really interesting. I like it, wouldn’t want to lose either of them any time soon.”

Gwen smiled, “it must be nice having cabin mates you actually like. You get Owen and Cody, and I get Heather. Sounds right.”

“How is that, by the way? I couldn’t imagine living with someone like that.”

“Oh, Trent, you have no idea,” Gwen started, “all she does is boss Beth and Lindsay around like they’re her servants. I don’t know how they can handle it. I can’t even handle it! Like, it’s sickening how terrible she treats them! And I know that Beth at least is a smart girl. If I were her I would have ditched Heather a long time ago. Like challenge one.”

Trent laughed, “I know. It’s interesting. I was with them in the last challenge when we paddled to Boney Island. Both of them are so sweet, and Lindsay is actually really smart,” Gwen gave him a look, “oh, don’t give me that look. She is! She knows every interpersonal connection on the bass team. It’s like she’s been studying up for the merge.”

The merge! Oh no, Gwen had done nothing to prepare for what was inevitably coming. She didn’t know anything about any of the Killer Bass! Hopefully, “did she tell you about these interpersonal connections?” Trent nodded. “Do you think you could tell me?”

“Yeah of course, don’t sweat it,” Trent replied, and then he proceeded to tell Gwen everything he had learned from Lindsay during the previous challenge. Who liked who, what friendships to look out for, and the bass in charge, “so yeah, that’s about it.”

Gwen took a minute to let all this information melt into her mind, “wow, Lindsay actually does know something. And I can’t believe she told you all this!”

“Me neither,” Trent admitted, “but I’m glad she did. Now we can start planning what to do after the merge.”

Gwen nodded, “yeah. Who do you think should be the first to go on that side?”

Based on everything Lindsay had told him, Trent knew there was only one answer to that question, “Courtney. Definitely Courtney. She’s in the middle of it all.”

“Makes sense,” Gwen agreed, “she’s their ‘leader,’ and they seem to actually listen to her. Obviously, nothing is going to become between her and Bridgette, and, even if Lindsay didn’t tell you Duncan liked her, it’s clear as day. They’d be lost without her.”

As if saying her name made her appear, Gwen and Trent spotted Courtney walking toward them right at that moment. Like them, she was a deer, and she also didn’t have any paint on her. That wasn’t a good sign.

“Hey, Courtney,” Trent called. The CIT, who had not been paying attention to what was in front of her, whipped her head up and looked around. Once she spotted them, Courtney waved, and continued walking towards them.

“Trent, Gwen,” Courtney greeted cordially, “I assume you guys are doing well,” she looked them up and down, displeasure evident in her eyes, “I see no paint on you.”

Gwen and Trent shared a look, a smile in their eyes, “likewise,” Trent replied, “and we’re doing fine. Having fun?”

Courtney shook her head, “you guys are the first people I’ve seen all challenge. It’s been rather boring, and it’s quite disheartening to see my hunters haven’t found you yet,” she was quiet for a few seconds, “no offence.”

“None taken,” Trent said, while laughing, “we could say the same thing. Maybe nobody’s been hit with any paintballs yet!”

The thought of that caused Courtney to grimace, “I certainly hope that’s not the case,” she said, her voice even, “I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”

“I’m with you there,” Gwen agreed, “this hasn’t been the most… exciting challenge, has it?”

“No, I suppose it hasn’t. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to be on my way,” Courtney gave them a weak smile, “nice chat. I guess,” and, without waiting for a farewell, she took off.

Once Courtney was out of earshot, the two started their conversation back up, “Well, that was certainly,” Trent considered his next words carefully, “something else?”

Gwen was about to answer when she heard a crash nearby and their former conversation partner shriek, “ _DUNCAN_.” This caused both of them to erupt into giggles. After a minute, Gwen finally had enough control to reply, “Oh I know, she’s like a robot!”

Then, over the loud speaker, “ _ATTENTION, HUMAN WILDLIFE AND HUNTERS, PLEASE REPORT BACK TO CAMP. IT’S TIME TO SHOW YOUR HIDES AND TALLY UP THE SCORES_.”

Trent shook his head and smiled, “it’s over! And we didn’t get any paint on us! Do you think we won?”

“I don’t know,” Gwen answered, directing the two of them back to camp, “Courtney didn’t have any paint on her either.”

“That’s true. But I have faith in Owen, Lindsay, Beth, and Leshawna. I’m sure they hit someone.”

Gwen considered this, “you’re probably right,” she looked at their surroundings, “this way, Trent.”

“Of course I’m right. I’m always right,” Trent joked, “and I’m sure that Cody and Heather managed to not get hit either. We’ve got this in the…” his words died in his mouth as the two of them approached the camp.

The two of them were the last ones to arrive for the gophers, and it seemed as though they were the only ones that were unscathed. Leshawna, Beth, and Heather were all dripping with both blue and orange paint. How had that happened? Two of them were hunters! And Owen was soaking wet, muddy, and had a face full of bruises. Cody was the worst of all, he was covered in bandages and had to sit in a wheelchair. Only Lindsay appeared to be clean, but that was just her front.

 “What happened here?” Trent asked, hoping to get a feel for the situation. Before any of his teammates could answer, Chris shushed them, “oh you’ll find out soon enough,” he laughed.

While all the Screaming Gophers were accounted for, only the Killer Bass hunters were present. Bridgette, Geoff, and Harold all had pleased expressions on their faces, and they were quietly whispering about something. Even though none of their deer were there, something told Gwen and Trent that they were all probably clean. It seemed that Leshawna and Beth were too busy shooting their own teammates and that Owen hadn’t had very good luck. Plus, they knew for a fact that at least Courtney was clean.

Over the course of ten minute, Sadie and DJ joined the bass, both clean, much to the annoyance of the entire Screaming Gophers. Once everyone except for Courtney and Duncan were accounted for, Chris began his spiel.

The two missing campers were having their own bad luck. Their deer antlers were intertwined, and they were having trouble finding their way back to camp.

“Are you sure we’re going the right way?” Courtney asked, “because you’re the one who said camp was this way, and it’s been five minutes, and we’re not there yet.”

Duncan rolled his eyes, “yes, I’m sure. I know where I’m going. I spend a lot of time out here, Princess, I could do this blindfolded.”

“But are you sure you’re sure?” Courtney asked again, worry evident in her voice, “because I’m not sure. What if you just think you know how to get back, but you don’t? What if we’re going the opposite direction of camp and we get stranded out here?”

“I’m sure,” Duncan repeated, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her down, “now relax, we’re going the right way, I promise. And, even if we weren’t, there’s a camera-man right there,” he pointed to a twenty-something year old man with a camera in his hands, “it’s his job to make sure we get back to camp. We’re fine.”

“If you say so,” Courtney muttered under her breath. She was still worried that they were going the wrong way, but Duncan had made a good point. The camera-man wasn’t going to let them get lost. And, she wasn’t going to admit it to him or anyone, but Duncan’s hand on her shoulder worked quite nicely at calming her down.

The two of them walked in silence, Duncan leading the way. Over the course of several minutes, the hand on Courtney’s shoulder had found its way to her hand, and their fingers were now interlocked. Duncan enjoyed this quiet moment between the two of them. As much as Courtney claimed she didn’t like him, she never pushed him away when they were alone. And she was pushing him away less and less when people were around. It had to mean something.

Courtney was also enjoying this moment. She didn’t like him, she couldn’t like him. He was a delinquent and had green hair and generally didn’t give a shit about anything. Almost everything about him was infuriating, and he drove her mad. Still, that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy his company. And it didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy his touch. Because she did, quite a lot.

After several more minutes of this, Duncan finally broke the silence, “what’re you thinking about, Court?”

“Hmmm,” Courtney hummed as her eyes found him. Then, she gave him a joking smile, “just about how annoying you are.”

Duncan gasped in mock offence, “and here I was thinking we were having a grand ole time together. You sure do know how to bring a man down.” Then, before Courtney had a chance to reply to this, he quickly moved on, “well, Princess, do you want to know what I was thinking about?”

“You can think?” Courtney playfully asked, earning her an unamused look, “fine, fine. What were you thinking about?”

“I was thinking about how much you like me,” Duncan answered, a boyish grin on his lips.

Courtney’s eyes widened, and she dropped his hand, “What? I do not!” she denied, “I knew you were dumb, but I didn’t know you were delusional. There’s no way you could possibly think that! God, you’re so annoying.”

“Deny it all you want, Princess,” Duncan said, his grin only growing larger, “it doesn’t change the fact that you like you me.” Then, as if it were an afterthought, he casually tossed out, “oh, and for what it’s worth, Court, I might like you, too. Maybe.”

“What?” Courtney asked, caught off guard by his half confession. In fact, it threw her for such a loop that she forgot the accusation he had made against her, and she became solely focused on what he just said, “did you just say you liked me?”

Duncan shrugged and gave her a wink, “maybe. Won’t know for sure until you admit that you like me, though.”

“That’s, Duncan, you can’t just,” Courtney was effectively flustered. She didn’t know what to say in response to this, and she could feel her face getting warmer.

Thankfully, this was the moment the two of them finally arrived at camp. They could see their teammates celebrating, and the Screaming Gophers all in various states of disarray. Courtney would have found it funny if she weren’t stuck on what Duncan had just said. She was pulled back into reality when two gophers decided to make jokes about their situation. “Oh, this is too much,” Gwen joked, while Owen laughed, “Duncan, you sly dog, you.”

“Shut up,” Courtney quickly said, giving the two of them her best glare, “I resent your insinuations, and it would benefit you not to make anymore, okay?” Both Gwen and Owen nodded, seemingly frightened by the CIT. Deciding this was good enough for her, she turned to address their host, “can we take these dumb antlers off now?”

Chris nodded, so Courtney removed Duncan’s antlers from his head before removing her own. Then, she tossed them at Chris and moved to stand by Bridgette, who was giving her curious looks.

“So, campers, now that everyone’s here, ahem, Duncan and Courtney, you are officially free to go. Killer Bass, enjoy your win. Screaming Gophers, I’ll be seeing you tonight,” Chris announced. When no one moved, he pulled out his megaphone, “GO, WHAT ARE YOU GUYS STILL DOING HERE?”

Everyone scattered, heading to their respective cabin. In all the chaos, Courtney grabbed Bridgette’s wrist. She needed to talk to her about what Duncan said in the woods, preferably away from everyone else.

“I need to talk to you,” Courtney quickly informed her, “not at the cabin. Sadie doesn’t need to hear this.”

“Yeah, sure,” Bridgette responded. She assumed it had something to do with Duncan, as the two of them managed to get stuck together during the challenge, “wanna go to the arts and crafts tent?”

Courtney nodded, “that’s probably our best bet.”

They walked silently to their destination, and, once they reached it, both of them took a seat at the table. Courtney opened her mouthed, trying to figure out how to broach the subject. Not finding a good way to do it, she closed her mouth.

Brigette noticed this, so she prompt her with, “so, Courtney, what’s up? It have something to do with Duncan?”

“Yes,” Courtney answered, pleased that her friend seemed to know her so well, “he said something kind of strange in the woods, and I thought maybe I should tell you.”

Bridgette waited for Courtney to tell her what Duncan said, but she didn’t. After thirty seconds, she prodded some more, “well, what did he say?”

“That he might like me,” Courtney admitted, “maybe.”

Bridgette let this run through her brain a few times before she replied. Of course Duncan liked Courtney, it wasn’t a surprise to anyone, except maybe Courtney. It wasn’t even a surprise that Duncan admitted it, especially since he tacked on the word maybe. That way, if Courtney didn’t feel the same way, which she undoubtably did, he could say it was just some joke.

“Well, of course he likes you,” Bridgette said, matter-of-factly, “I can’t believe you’re surprised by that. And the only reason he said maybe is to save face if you don’t feel the same way, which you do, right?”

“No!” Courtney denied for the second time that day, “how could you think I like _him_? I’ve already told you I don’t. God, you sound just like him.”

This caused Bridgette to raise an eyebrow at her friend. Courtney was doing no one a favor by continuing to deny her interest in Duncan. If she would finally admit it, it would give both of them a chance to blow off some much needed steam, and it would give herself, Geoff, and DJ a break from the constant tension. Bridgette knew it was time to be completely honest with the CIT.

“Hey, Courtney, babe, I need to say something, and I need you not to interrupt or get upset. Okay?” Bridgette waited for Courtney to nod before continuing, “great. I know you don’t want to admit you like Duncan or whatever, but it’s okay. The world’s not going to end just because you like a guy who isn’t necessarily your type.

“And Courtney, you do like him. I know that you don’t want to hear this or whatever, but you need to. And you don’t have to accept it or do anything about it, you just need to listen, okay? This boy likes you so damn much, and I’m pretty sure you like him just as much. You’re not doing yourself any favors by continuing to deny your feelings. You deserve this happiness.

“Plus, you guys already act like a couple, might as well enjoy all the perks of it. I mean, he calls you Princess and the two of you are always somehow touching, even when you’re angry at each other. I’ve seen your conversations, too, the ones where it’s just you and him. They look so intimate, so special, and the bits and pieces I hear of them are actually really sweet. Just, Courtney, it’s okay, okay?”

Over the course of Bridgette’s speech, Courtney had grown increasingly unsure of herself and the situation with Duncan. She knew she didn’t like him, but the way that Bridgette was laying it out made her feel like she did. Everything she was saying about their strange relationship was true. Courtney didn’t like it, and it left her almost speechless.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Courtney denied, her voice a few octaves higher than usual, “I don’t like him. I don’t. We’re just friends, barely friends at that. You can continue thinking I like him or whatever, but that makes you just as delusional as he is.”

Bridgette frowned and thought over her next words. Clearly, Courtney was not in the mood for any self-revelation. She would just have to move on and hope that the CIT would come to terms with it soon.

“Whatever you say. Is that all you had to tell me?”

“Yes,” Courtney quickly answered, nodding her head, “thanks for listening. I appreciate it, even if you do have the wrong idea about my feelings for a certain delinquent.”

Bridgette laughed, “no problem, Court, no problem at all.” Then, Bridgette stood up and grabbed one of Courtney’s hands, pulling her up as well, “now can we please go to lunch? I’m hungry!”

Courtney nodded, “of course.”                                                     

After walking to the dining hall, Courtney and Bridgette found that they were the last Killer Bass to arrive. They got their food and walked over to their table. Their teammates were sitting in their usual formation. Geoff on one side of the table, an empty spot next to him for Bridgette, and DJ and Duncan on the other, an empty spot between them for Courtney. Sadie and Harold sat off to the side, engrossed in their own conversation.

When the girls sat down, they went almost completely unnoticed by the guys. Duncan was in the middle of story about some trouble him and his brothers once got into, his arms gesturing wildly. Geoff and DJ were hanging onto every word he said, entranced by what was sure to be an exaggerated tale. The only indication any of them realized the girls’ presence was Duncan instinctively scooting closer to Courtney after she sat down, touching his knee to hers under the table.

Once Duncan finally finished his story, he casually draped an arm around Courtney, placing a hand on her waist. She let him leave it there, barely noticing he was touching her in the first place. Bridgette, however, had noticed right away and shot the CIT a playful look. Courtney returned it with a confused expression, causing the surfer to giggle and shake her head. If Courtney didn’t get it, there was no reason to let her know. She wanted to see how long it would take her to notice Duncan’s arm around her.

“Hey, Princess,” Duncan greeted, interrupting the two girls’ silent conversation, “Malibu. What took you so long?”

Courtney looked at him and opened her mouth to reply, but then shut it, not knowing how to answer this. She couldn’t tell him that she needed to talk to Bridgette about what he said in the woods. As she raked her brain to come up with a suitable reply, Duncan gave her a wide smirk, telling her he somehow knew it had something to do with him. The delinquent opened his mouth, no doubt ready to lob an accusation at her, so she quickly opened her mouth so that she could say something, anything. However, before either of them could get a word out, Bridgette spoke.

“I needed help with something,” Bridgette lied. She could see that Courtney had no clue what to say and wanted to spare her friend some embarrassment, “and it’s a secret, so don’t think either of us are going to tell what it is. Sometimes girl talk needs to stay between girls, right Court?”

“Yes,” Courtney quickly agreed, giving the surfer a thankful smile.

Duncan shook his head, knowing for a fact that wasn’t what happened. Bridgette was a bad liar, and, even if she wasn’t, he saw that it was Courtney who pulled the surfer away from everyone, not the other way around. He opened his mouth to call her out, but once again he was cut off.

“Did you get it taken care of, Bridge?” Geoff asked in a concerned voice. Duncan couldn’t believe it. Was he actually falling for the girls’ lie? He looked over to DJ and saw that he too seemed really interested in what the surfer was apparently going through. “Because I know you said it was girl stuff, but I can be, like, really helpful!”

Bridgette laughed and gave Geoff a small smile, “yes. I just had to ask her a question about something. It’s all answered! And, uhm, I’ll remember that for next time. Thanks, Geoff.”

“No problem, Bridge,” Geoff said, returning her smile and patting her shoulder, “glad everything is all right.”

“Yeah,” DJ interjected, “can’t have any of my teammates having problems! Good thing Courtney was there to help.” He smiled at the girl next to him, then glanced down at Duncan’s hand on her waist, and the smile transformed into a smirk, “in fact, it’s a good thing we all have each other. I know we would all do any thing to help each other. That’s what teammates are for, right Courtney?”

Courtney nodded, not realizing that DJ was teasing her, “yes, of course. That’s why we won today, the Screaming Gophers have no teamwork. We would never open fire on each other.”

“Mhmmm,” Bridgette hummed in agreement. Then, she caught DJ’s eye from across the table. He winked at her before motioning down to Duncan’s hand. Bridgette returned the wink and addressed Courtney again, “we got really lucky with our team. I’m so glad that we’re all friends, that we all like each other so much!”

Courtney eyed the surfer suspiciously. Was she trying to reference her supposed crush on a certain nameless teammate? She just shook her head and gave Bridgette her best glare. Bridgette, however, returned it with a faux-innocent expression and a sweet smile.

“What’s that look for, Court?” Bridgette asked, her voice laced with confusion she didn’t feel, “are you trying to imply that we don’t all like each other? That we’re not all friends?”

Was Bridgette being for real? Was she trying to bait Courtney into making a confession in front of everyone? Or into making an anti-confession? She didn’t know the surfers intentions or how to respond to this. Looking around at her teammates, she found that Bridgette and DJ were wearing identical smiles and kept not so slyly winking at each other, obviously conspiring about something. Duncan was smirking at her, a look of fondness and amusement hiding behind his dumb, beautiful eyes. Only Geoff looked as confused as she felt.

After a few moments of silence, Duncan spoke again. Bridgette and DJ’s game of mortify Courtney did not go unnoticed by him, and he always enjoyed playing along. “Yeah, Princess, do we not all like each other here? Because I sure think we do.”

Courtney shook her head, “I never said we didn’t all like each other. But I can’t say there aren’t _certain_ teammates I don’t feel complete affection for.” Then, she shot a glare at him.

Duncan’s smirk only grew wider. Bridgette giggled. DJ smiled knowingly at Courtney and patted her shoulder. Geoff tried his hardest to piece together what they were talking about. There sure did seem to be a lot of hidden meaning behind everyone’s words, but he couldn’t figure out what it was. He also couldn’t figure out who it was Courtney didn’t like better than everyone else.

“Court?” Geoff tentatively asked, hoping he wouldn’t get pulled into whatever weird thing was happening, “who don’t you like? It’s not me, is it?”

“Hmm?” Courtney head snapped to face the party boy, “what are you talking about? Of course I like you.”

Geoff considered this. Courtney had never done anything in the past that would indicate her not liking him, except when he let himself get carried away with the splinter during last challenge, but she had also never done anything that would indicate her liking him. It could go either way. And really, out of the four of them, He was the one that she most likely didn’t like. Bridgette and she were best friends, DJ is the most impossible person to dislike, and Duncan and she were something. Geoff didn’t like thinking about it.

“It’s okay if it’s me,” Geoff assured her, “I know we don’t have the most in common. We’re only friends because of Bridgette and Duncan and Deej. It’s fine.”

Courtney shook her head, annoyed. Then, seeing the genuine hurt and confusion on Geoff’s face compared to everyone else’s manufactured expressions, her face softened. “No, Geoff, I do like you, I promise. We’re friends. You might not be someone who I’d hang out with in real life, but you’re definitely someone I like hanging out with here.”

“Really?” Geoff nodded, to which Courtney just nodded, “then who don’t you like? Because I know it’s not Bridge or Deej or Dunc.”

Looking at the three mentioned alliance members, Courtney flashed them all a playful smile, “why do you think that? I definitely like you the most right now.”

Now Geoff was really confused. I didn’t make any sense that Courtney would like him better than the other three, and the more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. “because, Court, you have to like them! Bridge is your best friend, DJ is the nicest person ever, and, I dunno, you and Duncan are, like, I dunno, something!”

Courtney, who really couldn’t catch a break, just sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead. Apparently, today was Courtney-loves-Duncan day or something equally ridiculous. However, unlike Duncan and Bridgette before him, Geoff accusation, or in this case suggestion, wasn’t teasing or confrontational. It was honest and unsure. Hoping for some clarity, the CIT swallowed her pride and asked the party boy just what he meant by that, in front of everybody.

“I dunno, it’s like the two of you are together, but you’re not!” Geoff tried to explain. He noticed Courtney’s furrowing brows and knew he had to do better, “I mean, you don’t like him, but also, you do. And then, he’s got this soft spot for you, and you’ve got this soft spot for him, but, like, all you two do is argue, except when you’re not arguing. And, like, right now, he’s had his arm around you this entire time, and you’ve just let him keep it there. Which shouldn’t make any sense, but it does!”

After Geoff’s earnest explanation, the Killer Bass five were silent for a full minute, no one really knowing what to say. DJ and Bridgette knew this wasn’t their place to say anything, Duncan felt a mixture of embarrassment and pride, and Courtney had a lot to think about. And think about it she did.

This was the third time that day someone made a reference to her and Duncan’s complicated relationship, and the second time it was laid out for her. When Duncan had brought up the apparently not so wild idea that she liked him, she only felt annoyed. Then, when Bridgette kept pestering her about it, she couldn’t believe that her friend could be so wrong about her. Now, though, now all she felt was confusion. She didn’t like him. She didn’t. But, like Geoff said, she also did.

Then, Courtney did the only thing she knew to do. She removed Duncan’s arm from her person, silently stood up, threw away her trash, and walked out the door, leaving her teammates to wonder if she was okay or not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was Paintball Deer Hunter. Court's got some stuff to figure out. Again, if you feel so inclined, leave a kudos or a comment. I'd really appreciate it.


	4. Not Always Right

Courtney and Bridgette laid on the beach, their heads and shoulders touching. They had an hour before everyone had to meet there for the challenge, and they were enjoying some quiet time away from everyone else. It had been so long since Chris had given the campers any free time on a challenge day, and, while most used this time to do something productive, the only thing Courtney and Bridgette wanted to do was relax before things got crazy again.

The two rarely got any time to just sit back and breathe, even on the off days. It seemed like one of the guys always needed one or the other for something. It was never ending and a little annoying. So, when Geoff regretfully informed them that the “Bass Boys” had some business to attend to and sadly could not hang out with them before the challenge, Courtney and Bridgette pushed down their feelings of suspicion and headed straight to the beach.

“What do you think they’re doing?” Bridgette asked, a hand absentmindedly tracing lines in the sand.

Courtney lifted a shoulder in a shrug before realizing Bridgette couldn’t see her, “I don’t know. I don’t want to think about it. Probably something that’s only accomplishment will be making today’s challenge harder than it needs to be. You know, the usual.”

“That sounds right,” Bridgette said, moving an arm to cover her eyes, “but I really hope you’re wrong. I don’t want to have deal with any surprises today. We finally have a chance to pull ahead of the gophers, and they’re probably going to be too worried about whatever poorly-thought out plan they’ve thought up. I just want the advantage, Court.”

“Yeah, me too,” Courtney agreed before moving on completely, “we’re going to win this challenge today, you know that right?”

Bridgette laughed at this. Courtney hadn’t been this positive before a challenge since, well, ever. Sure, she was the one who lead the Killer Bass through victories and losses, but she was never the one who encouraged. Instead, the CIT usually groaned about how poorly things were going to go or were already going while she gave everyone their orders. It was usually up to Bridgette or DJ to point out that not all was hopeless.

“Why are you laughing at me, Bridge?” Courtney asked, a soft whine in her voice, “do you not think we’re going to win? That’s not very optimistic.”

 “No, no, that’s not it,” Bridgette answered once she had calmed herself down, “it’s just, you’re always so negative before challenges. It’s weird to hear you say we’re going to win so plainly, not like you at all.”

Courtney gasped in mock indignation, “that’s not true! I’m, like, the most positive person ever! How could you say that? Aren’t I the one who never loses faith and always says we can do it?”

Once again, Bridgette started laughing. She was glad that Courtney was able to not take herself so seriously, something that would not have happened just two weeks ago. It was nice watching her friend become less uptight and more relaxed. Then, Courtney started laughing with her. They were real laughs instead of her usual polite chuckle, signifying that she letting loose completely. This caused Bridgette to turn her head towards the CIT and give her a smile, which Courtney returned.

In all the excitement neither heard a third girl approaching. It wasn’t until Lindsay was standing over them, peering down at the two and blocking the sun did they realize that someone had joined them. Lindsay watched in interest as the two calmed down, and, once they were quiet, she squatted and greeted them, “Hi, I’m Lindsay, from the Screaming Gophers.”

At this, Bridgette and Courtney shared an amused look. Neither knew what Lindsay wanted, but they were curious to find out. Even Courtney, who would normally be suspicious of someone from the other team casually talking to them, wanted to know what brought her here.

“We know who you are,” Bridgette said, her voice friendly as she sat up, “what’s up, Lindsay? What brings you over?”

Lindsay looked around, as if making sure the coast was clear, “oh, uhm, I just wanted to see if I could hang out with you guys. I don’t want to hang out with Heather anymore, and she’s not letting me hang out with Beth, and I don’t think Gwen and Leshawna like me very much, so I was trying to find something to do. Then, I saw the two of you laying here and laughing, and you guys looked like you were having so much fun, and I’ve always wanted to hang out with you, so I decided that maybe I would, uhm, see if you would let me? I understand if you don’t! We’re on different teams, and you don’t know me, but I’ve always liked you guys. So, can I?”

Bridgette turned her head towards Courtney, expecting to find an annoyed expression and was pleasantly surprised to see that she seemed to be entertaining this thought. Then, the CIT returned her expectance gaze with a slight nod. Bridgette smiled before addressing Lindsay again.

“Of course you can hang out with us! Come, sit down, join us! We were just enjoying some time on the beach before the challenge!”

“Are you sure?” Lindsay asked looking from Bridgette to Courtney. When they both nodded, and Bridgette patted the ground beside her, the gopher took a hesitant seat, “thanks.”

Bridgette smiled at Lindsay before laying back down, which Lindsay quickly copied, “it’s no problem, right Court?”

“Right,” the CIT confirmed, “but I can’t promise we’re going to be much fun. We’re not really talking about anything, just joking about our team. I guess we’ll have to find something else to talk about. Whatever you want.”

Lindsay chewed her lip, trying to think of something they could all talk about. Then, she got the perfect idea! They could talk about boys! It was the one thing she knew all girls liked to talk about, unless, of course, they were into girls. Then they liked to talk about girls. And Lindsay hadn’t had good boy-talk in so long! Heather was the only person she had ever met who didn’t like to gush about pretty people, Beth wasn’t very good at it, and Gwen and Leshawna would never indulge her. They would only talk about it in secret, where there was no chance of it getting back to Heather. Plus, she knew for a fact that Bridgette liked Geoff, and that at least Duncan liked Courtney. Even if she didn’t like him back she still probably had something to say about it.

“So, who do you think the hottest boy on the island is?” Lindsay asked, deciding to just go for it.

“What?!” Courtney asked as she sat up while Bridgette just laughed, “you went to all this trouble to hang out with us just so that we could talk about boys?”

Lindsay giggled, also sitting up, “Nooo. I just thought it could be fun. So, who do you think the hottest boy on the island is?”

“I don’t know! Am I just supposed to have an opinion on this? Because I don’t! Why would I?”

Bridgette continued to laugh as she, too, sat up. Then, she placed one hand on Courtney’s knee and the other on Lindsay’s. “Court, calm down. I’ll go first.” She looked around, checking to see that no guys were around, “100% it’s Geoff. He’s just, he’s so blond and really fit and so, so dumb. Like, so dumb. I shouldn’t like it, but I do.”

Lindsay nodded, her suspicions confirmed, “ahh, do you like him? You so like him. And, like I know I don’t know him, but I’m pretty sure he likes you, too. I see the way he looks at you.”

“Of course he likes me,” Bridgette said, “he’s very obvious. He uses terrible pick-up lines that don’t make any sense and makes me dumb, thoughtful presents. But, and I have to thank you for asking this, I really want to know,” she sticks a thumb toward Courtney, “who she thinks the hottest boy on the island is. We’ve actually never talked about it. But, of course, you know who I think you think it is.”

Courtney shook her head, “you’re unbelievable. And, ugh, I can’t believe I’m entertaining this, but the most attractive guy who is currently on the island would have to be either Trent or DJ. If I had to pick.”

Both Lindsay and Bridgette looked at Courtney with a confused expression. Bridgette because never had Courtney ever made any indication that she thought either of those boys were cute and because neither of them were Duncan, and Lindsay because Bridgette was confused.

“Really?” Bridgette asked in a flat voice while Lindsay just shrugged before excitedly asking, “so, do you like one of them?”

“No, no,” Courtney said, choosing to address Lindsay first, “I just think they’re good looking. We all know that Trent and Gwen have something going on, so that’s a hard pass. And DJ, well DJ is too good for me. He’s the best person on this island, and I’m just bossy Courtney. He’s out of my league. Also, he’s like a brother to me at this point, so that would be weird.” Then, she turned to Bridgette, “yes, really. Why do you ask?”

Bridgette shook her head in a playful manner, “first of all, don’t talk about yourself like that. Second of all, you know why I ask. We all know who you really like.”

Courtney scoffed and was about to claim Bridgette didn’t know what she was talking about when Lindsay squealed and clasped her hands together, “you like someone? Who? I’m usually really good at figuring these kinds of things out, but I haven’t been able to figure out if you like someone yet! Who?”

“Bridgette doesn’t know what she’s talking about,” Courtney said, “I don’t like any one on this island. Sorry to disappoint.”

“Oh,” Lindsay said, a little dejected. Then, her face lit up again, “well, I know someone who likes you! Duncan! Would you ever consider..?”

Bridgette started laughing at Lindsay’s innocent question while Courtney just closed her eyes for a few seconds and brought a hand to her face. Apparently, she didn’t need Bridgette to bring the conversation to Duncan.

“Of course I would never consider it, Lindsay,” Courtney said, “Duncan is vile and sophomoric and maybe the worst person I have ever met. He doesn’t listen to anything I say or anything anyone says, and he’s incredibly inconsiderate to those around him. There’s no chance. And I am so, so tired of always talking about him.”

Lindsay nodded to herself throughout Courtney’s answer, silently agreeing with everything she was saying. Or, everything she could understand from what she was saying, anyway. She was surprised to see Bridgette rolling her eyes at the CIT. Did she not think any of that stuff was true? Because, from what Lindsay had observed and everything that Tyler had told her, Courtney knew what she was talking about.

“Ooh I so agree!” Lindsay exclaimed, “or, at least I think I so agree. I don’t know what some of those words mean. But, yeah! Duncan is so mean! He’s not nice to animals and he’s not nice to nature, and he wasn’t nice to Tyler! It’s good that you don’t like him, Court. I’m going to call you that now. Court. You could do so much better than him! Who has green hair, anyway?”

“Lindsay! I love you so much right now!” Courtney said, leaning over Bridgette so that she could pull the gopher into a quick hug. Finally there was someone who didn’t keep insisting that she liked Duncan, “I know we just formally met, but I think you might be my favorite person on the island. I’m sorry about every mean thing I ever thought about you before today. You’re so much smarter than I ever gave you credit for!”

“Thanks, I think,” Lindsay replied while Bridgette just shook her head and laughed, “wow, you jump ship so fast. Thought I was your best friend, Court.”

Courtney was about to respond to Bridgette when she heard footsteps walking towards them. All three girls turned their heads to see their host making his way to the beach, no doubt to set up for the challenge. Figuring Chris would find some way to use the three of them hanging out against them, they stood up, and Lindsay separated herself from the bass girls.

Once Chris made it to where the girls were standing, he let out a chuckle, “girls, don’t stop what you’re doing on my account. I, for one, would love to hear what you’re talking about. Just pretend I’m not here, continue building those cross-team friendships.”

None of the girls acknowledged that they heard Chris. Instead, Courtney just peered around him and waved at Lindsay, “it was nice talking to you, Lindsay. I’m glad we got to meet you.”

Lindsay waved back, “you too, Court, Bridge. Talk to you guys later!”                                                                                                    

Then, the four of them waited for the rest of the campers to arrive. Once the final straggler (Geoff) arrived, Chris explained the challenge. Today it would be cooking, each team creating a three course meal to feed to him. Compared to everything else they had been forced to do, this was a nice change of pace. Nothing physically or mentally demanding about cooking, and both teams knew they could rock this.

“Every morning a truck brings us food. Today’s task starts there,” Chris explained as a truck drove out of the lake, a dolphin behind the wheel. The campers just shrugged this off, it wasn’t even close to the weirdest thing they’d seen since the competition started. Chris shooed them away so that the teams could start planning.

The Killer Bass immediately formed a huddle to discuss how they were going to tackle this challenge. From her spot between Bridgette and DJ, Courtney noticed six pairs of eyes waiting for her orders. The CIT, however, had no strategy for this one. She didn’t know how to cook.

“DJ, your mother owns a restaurant, correct?” Courtney asked.

DJ nodded, “yep.”

“Great, do you want to take the reins on this one?” Courtney asked before taking a deep breath, “admittedly, cooking is not my strong suit, so I think it would be better if someone else took charge. Since your mother owns a restaurant, I assume you can cook.”

“Sure I can, Court. Won’t let you down,” DJ promised, “do you wanna check out the truck with me, help me decide what our courses will be?”

Courtney shook her head, “no, it’s okay. I will be no help there. Just, just take Geoff and Duncan. You have total control.”

As the guys left, Bridgette stuck her elbow in Courtney’s side, “I thought you were a CIT, Court. I thought you could do anything,” she teased.

“Whatever,” Courtney said, rolling her eyes at her friend, “they never taught us how to cook. They have actual trained people for that.”

Before Bridgette could reply, the guys rejoined them, “so, I was thinking Italian,” DJ greeted, “antipasto for appetizer, spaghetti for dinner, and cannoli for dessert. Sound good, Courtney?”

“Why are you asking me?” Courtney asked, “you’re the one in charge. Now let’s go, team.”

The Killer Bass grabbed what food they needed and headed to the dining hall. Once there, DJ sat them down so that they could divide up the work, “who wants to do antipasto?”

“I can,” Harold offered, “I’m like a black belt at cutting cheese.” At that, the less mature members of the team started snickering, but Harold took no notice, “Sadie, want to help?”

Sadie nodded, so DJ gave them the go ahead, “okay, spaghetti?”

“I’ll do it!” Courtney said, jumping at the chance. She couldn’t cook, but she could probably figure out how to boil pasta.

“Great,” DJ nodded, “who else wants to do spaghetti?”

Duncan raised his hand, “I can. I make a killer spaghetti sauce. I am Italian, after all, and it is a family recipe. It’s kind of the one thing I’m good at in the kitchen.”

DJ considered this. On one hand, a Duncan-Courtney team up would more than likely result in an argument. On the other, Duncan seemed to know his stuff about spaghetti sauce, and a homemade recipe could put them on top. He decided the positives outweighed the negatives, that Duncan would be doing the spaghetti sauce, but he would give Courtney a chance to switch to dessert, “sounds good to me, man. Court, I understand you might not want to work with him. If you wanna switch to dessert, I won’t stop you. Geoff can boil the spaghetti.”

Before Courtney had a chance to even decide if she wanted to take DJ’s offer, Duncan waved his hand, “dude, don’t be so dramatic. Princess’ll be fine with me. Let the blonds take the dessert, man. Me and her are a good team, even if she doesn’t want to admit it.”

“Oooookay,” DJ agreed, but not before Courtney gave him a slight nod, telling him it was fine, “so, that leaves Geoff and Bridge for dessert. Y’all okay with that?”

“Of course!” Geoff answered, giving Bridgette and DJ a smile, “it’ll be a piece of cake. As long as you give us a recipe!”

DJ laughed, he assumed someone would need help, “no problem. I’ll get y’all started, it’s easy.”

As the three pairs settled into the challenge, they each chatted about different things. Currently, Courtney was doing everything she could to get Duncan to confess what him and the “Bass Boys” were planning earlier, but he wasn’t giving up the information.

“For the last time, Princess, I’m not going to tell you.” Duncan said, “you’ll find out soon enough, I promise.”

Courtney crossed her arms over her chest, “I don’t want to find out soon enough. I want to find out now. And then I want to put a stop to it before anyone else finds out.”

“Well, tough luck,” Duncan said as he smirked at her and scooted a little closer, “no one’s putting a stop to this. It’s something we have to do.”

“Of course it is,” Courtney muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes. Then, she turned to face him, “so, should we get started?” Duncan looked at her blankly, “you know, on the spaghetti and the spaghetti sauce.”

Instead of answering, Duncan just laughed for a full minute. Courtney didn’t think she said anything that warranted this reaction, she just wanted to know if they should start cooking yet. Nothing funny. His laughing caused the entire Killer Bass team to stop what they were doing and watch, but only for a second. Soon enough they were back to work. This was a regular enough occurrence that no one was too worried or interested in what was happening.

When he finally decided to stop laughing, he wrapped an arm around Courtney and pulled her close, “Princess, Court, it takes twenty minutes to boil spaghetti at most. It takes two hours to make the spaghetti sauce. We have four hours.”

“Oh,” was all Courtney said as she looked down. She didn’t like feeling dumb, and she definitely felt dumb right now. How could she be so far off? “Sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Awe, Courtney, don’t be sorry,” Duncan sweetly told her as he rubbed her shoulder. Even though it shouldn’t, this was making her feel a little less embarrassed about severely misjudging the amount of time it takes to boil pasta. She hated how much she liked it when it was just the two of them together, how much she enjoyed his touch. Duncan smiled as she leaned into his side. Then, because he couldn’t ever just let a nice moment be, his smile morphed into a smirk, “it’s not your fault you’re not as smart as me.”

Just like that, the moment was broken. Courtney pushed herself out of Duncan’s grip and gave him her best glare, “I hate you so much. You’re the worst person I have ever met.”

Duncan rolled his eyes and let out a short chuckle, “that’s not true. You know you like me, Princess.”

“Not this again,” Courtney complained, scooting away from him, “I don’t like you.”

“Yes you do,” Duncan argued, pulling her to him again, “and maybe I like you, too. If you could just stop denying it, all this,” he used his free hand to show off his body, “could be yours. Maybe.”

“I don’t want all that, Duncan,” Courtney whined, “I want everyone to leave me alone about you.” She didn’t, however, remove his arm from her shoulder.

Duncan was about to tell her that was bullshit when DJ came over to check on them, “y’all doing okay? I heard laughing. And I see annoyed Courtney. The challenge just started. Y’all can get through this, right?”

Courtney nodded, “yes, sorry. We were just having a small disagreement, but it’s nothing that will affect our ability to complete this challenge.”

“Yeah,” Duncan added, winking at DJ, “did you know it only takes like twenty minutes to boil pasta? Because Courtney didn’t. She thought it’d take this whole four hours.”

“Shut up!” Courtney ordered before DJ had a chance to say anything, “I didn’t think that! I was just making sure we had enough time.”

Duncan gave DJ a look that told him Courtney was full of it and pulled her closer, “yeah right. You asked if we should start, then you admitted you didn’t know. Why are you lying so much today? First about not liking me and now about this.”

“I am not lying!” Courtney argued, her voice rising, “can you just shut up? I am so tired of hearing your voice.”

“Please. You love my voice. Just like you love me,” Duncan teased.

Courtney had her arms crossed over chest again, and she looked dangerously close to stamping her foot. She opened her mouth to continue arguing, but, before she could get any words out, DJ placed a hand on both of their shoulders.

“Guys. Stop. Please,” DJ said, giving them both an unamused look, “if y’all aren’t going to be able to work together, I can just switch Courtney and Geoff. It’s not that big of a deal, I promise.”

“Maybe that’s not such a bad idea,” Courtney clipped while Duncan shook his head, “we’re fine. I’ll behave, I promise. It’s my fault.”

DJ looked between the two of them, not knowing which one to listen to. Then, Duncan whispered something in Courtney’s ear he couldn’t hear, and she pulled away enough to look at his face and ask really, which caused him to nod. She gave him a soft smile. What was this? Then, Courtney turned to face DJ, “we’re fine. We won’t argue anymore. Sorry for all this.”

“Uh, it’s fine, guys,” DJ replied. Then, he noticed Harold coming over and gave Duncan a meaningful look. He understood right away, pulled away from Courtney, and walked over to the sink. He grabbed a pot and filled it with water, causing Courtney to give him a confused look. She thought it wasn’t even close to time to start cooking. Her confusion morphed into annoyance as he “accidently” dumped the pot of water onto Harold.

“HEY! Smooth move, Dorkahontos!” Harold complained, looking down at his now wet pants. DJ and Duncan stood there laughing while Courtney watched in disbelief. This must have been whatever they were planning.

“Oh, bummer, better go change, man,” DJ said once his laughs subside. Harold huffed and stormed out of the kitchen. Then, Duncan and DJ fist bumped, and Courtney could see Geoff giving them a thumbs up from across the kitchen.

Once Harold was out of the kitchen, Courtney spun around to scold them, “you did that on purpose! Why?”

At Courtney’s accusations, DJ looked nervous, afraid of being found out. Admittedly, he wasn’t a big supporter of bullying Harold until he did whatever the three of them said, but Geoff and Duncan had convinced him it’d be worth it. Duncan, on the other hand, just continued smirking at her.

“Uh, of course I did that on purpose, Court,” Duncan answered, causing DJ cringe and scurry away. He didn’t want to be yelled at. “and why? Only we get to know that.”

Courtney shook her head, “you’re the worst.”

“I know,” Duncan said proudly as he once again wrapped an arm around her, “that’s why you like me.”

Courtney rolled her eyes, opened her mouth to say something, then closed it, remembering the promise she made to DJ. Then, Screaming Gophers made their grand appearance in the kitchen, Heather barking orders at everyone. It was so ridiculous that Courtney let herself forget she was momentarily annoyed with Duncan so that they could share an amused look.

Over the next thirty minutes, the Killer Bass gained significant headway in their challenge. DJ helped Sadie get everything in order as Harold was still missing, Geoff and Bridgette completed the cannoli shell mixture, and Duncan and Courtney waited in a contented silence, occasionally commenting on the gophers’ inability to work as a team.

After making sure Sadie was good, DJ went to check on team dessert. Geoff was putting the cannoli shell mixture in the fridge, and Bridgette was watching him almost dreamingly. It was time to help a brother out.

“I think he digs you,” DJ confided as Geoff passed behind him.

Really? Of course Geoff dug her, he was super obvious about it. Bridgette gave DJ a knowing smile and decided to play along, “maybe. He is kind of cute.”

Once she said that, DJ sprinted to Geoff and pushed him towards her. He gave her an innocent smile and proceeded to use the worst pick up line she had ever heard, “you know, you look good when you’re cooking, kinda like my friend Evan’s really hot mom.”

Bridgette stared at him blankly. She blinked. She blinked again. She looked over at DJ, who was shaking his head. Did that really just happen? Did Geoff really just compare her to a MILF? It was as cute as it was insulting as it was annoying. Geoff was still smiling innocently at her, it was clear he didn’t know what he just did.

Thankfully, before Bridgette really had to respond to this, Harold re-entered the kitchen. This time, however, he wasn’t wearing any pants. Everyone stopped what they were doing to see how this was going to go. Both DJ and Geoff flanked to Duncan’s side. Courtney regarded them with disdain and went to talk to Bridgette.

“Uhm, why isn’t Harold wearing any pants?” Bridgette asked as the boy in question made it clear he didn’t know where they were.

Courtney sighed and jerked her head to where DJ, Duncan, and Geoff were standing and laughing, “why specifically? I don’t know. Why in general?” Courtney pointed her thumb towards them, “those three. Duncan told me as much.”

“Cool,” Bridgette said in a tone of voice clearly said it was not cool, “just what we need. Half our team distracted by whatever it is they’re doing. Love it. I don’t know why they would even want to steal Harold’s pants.”

“Don’t try to understand, Bridge,” Courtney said, “the mind of a guy is not a place you want to get lost it. Trust me.”

Bridgette nodded, remembering what Geoff had just told her. Then, “do you think it’s a compliment to be compared to a MILF?”

“A MIFL?” Courtney asked, her eyes brows furrowing in confusion, “I’m sorry, I’m afraid I don’t know what that is.”

Bridgette laughed, “sorry. It’s like, the mom of a friend you want to, you know, do it with,” she watched Courtney as realization dawned on her face. Then, she scrunched her nose in disgust. “So, do you think that’s a compliment? Because I think maybe it could be, but I’m not sure.”

“Why do you ask?” Courtney asked, “did, did Geoff compare you to one?” Bridgette nodded. Courtney racked her brain for a way to make this not terrible, “well. It’s better than ‘you pitch a tent like a guy,’ right?”

“I guess,” Bridgette started, but she was then distracted by a rather loud fight between Heather and Leshawna. Both girls turned to watch in amusement as the Screaming Gophers tore each other down. When the fight finally subsided, Bridgette turned back to Courtney, “I’m so glad I’m not on her,” she motioned toward Heather, “team.”

Courtney nodded, “same.” Then, she noticed that Geoff was returning to his work station, “guess this is when I leave you. Good luck with everything.”

“Thanks, Court,” Bridgette smiled, “talk to you later.”

Once again, the Killer Bass settled into a nice rhythm of work. Despite being forced to stay in his underwear, Harold composed himself well, as if it wasn’t even an issue. Bridgette pushed through whatever awkwardness she felt after Geoff’s unorthodox compliment. Duncan and Courtney finally started on their dish, both of them having a better time than the CIT expected.

“So you make this a lot at home?” Courtney asked as she chopped tomatoes.

Duncan nodded, “yeah. It’s my ma’s favorite recipe. We have it at least once every two weeks. I’ve helped with the sauce for as long as I can remember.”

“That sounds nice,” Courtney said wistfully, “my family doesn’t eat together a lot. Both of my parents are really busy with work, so they don’t have time to cook. I can’t remember Mother ever cooking anything for me. It was always the nanny. Or take out. Usually they weren’t even home until I was asleep.”

“Really?” Duncan asked before putting down his knife and frowning at Courtney. She just gave him a slight nod. “Sorry, Princess.”

Courtney shrugged, “it’s not that big of a deal. It’s just the way it is. I wouldn’t have the life I do if my parents didn’t work so much. It would be weird if it was different.”

“Yes it is,” Duncan said, taking the knife out of her hand and placing his on her shoulders, “that sounds really lonely.”

“It’s not,” Courtney argued, unsure why she was unloading all of this now, in the middle of a challenge, to him, of all people. “I had my nanny growing up. And the maid. They were really good friends. They’re still good friends.”

Duncan frowned again and grabbed one of her hands. He heard the unspoken words underneath her indifferent tone. “well, you have better friends now. Age appropriate friends, not your nanny and maid. You have Bridgette and Deej and Geoff.” He squeezed her hand, “and me.”

“And you,” Courtney agreed, returning the squeeze. This was a nice moment, Courtney thought. The challenge was going well, much better for the Killer Bass than the Screaming Gophers, anyway. The Harold thing wasn’t taking up nearly as much time as she thought it would and working with Duncan wasn’t nearly as difficult as she thought it was going to be. She almost liked him. The way he gently held her hand, the casual but meaningful way he spoke to her, the fact that the silence wasn’t unbearably awkward. And then she realized. She did like him! No, no, this wasn’t good.

Courtney tried her best to push these feelings down. If Bridgette was to be believed, she had been denying this for a long time, so what was the harm in denying it a little longer? Denying it until it went away? None, probably. However, when he gave her a real smile instead of his usual smirk, she knew it was no use. It had hit her all at once, and it wasn’t going away. She had to get out of there.

Thankfully, that was when Harold, who she hadn’t even realized left, walked into the kitchen wearing his pajamas. This caused Duncan to release her hand to clap, DJ and Geoff joining him, “nice jammies.”

As Harold responded, Courtney used this time to slip away and find Bridgette. “Bridge. We have a problem.”

Bridgette nodded, “you’re telling me. We finally get Harold to put more clothes on, and it’s his pajamas. He’s going to get so hot in those.”

“No, not that,” Courtney whispered, causing Bridgette to give her a confused look, “well, yes that, but also,” she closed her eyes and quickly said, “I think maybe I like Duncan.”

“Really?” Bridgette squealed, “that’s so exciting. Why is that a problem?”

Courtney narrowed her eyes, “because, uhm, well, I don’t know. Just, just can you switch with me? Can you work with Duncan until I figure all this out?”

Bridgette let out a soft giggle, “sure, Court. But after the challenge? You and me.”

Courtney agreed to this and watched Bridgette take her place by the tomatoes. She watched as the guys decided to return to work and saw Duncan’s face slip into disappointment for a split second before settling on annoyed.

“Court, hey,” Geoff greeted, obviously confused, “why are you over here? And why is Bridge over there? Did she ask you switch?” There was hurt present in his voice.

“No.” Courtney said, feeling bad about making Geoff feel this way, “I asked to switch. Promise. Things were, they were,” she took a moment to find her next words, “I just needed a break.”

Geoff nodded, as if he understood perfectly, “I get it. Completely.” He didn’t. He also didn’t want to be pulled into another nonsensical Duncan-Courtney thing. It was easier this way.

Courtney smiled, “thanks. So what are we doing here?”

As Geoff tried explaining the cannoli making process, Bridgette was having a difficult time stopping Duncan from walking across the kitchen and bringing Courtney back.

“I’m telling you, Duncan, I was the one who asked to switch. I needed a break from Geoff. He compared me to a MILF earlier, and it was a little unsettling. This will only be for a bit. I promise.”

Duncan rolled his eyes, “yeah right, Malibu. Even Geoff isn’t that dumb. I know Courtney asked you to switch, but I don’t know why. We were having a nice time, I thought. Tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong,” Bridgette said. Duncan just shook his head and started towards Courtney. Bridgette grabbed his sleeve, forcing him to stop, “okay you’re not wrong. She did ask to switch. I just can’t tell you why. Oh, and you’re also wrong. Geoff did compare me to his friend’s really hot mom, but it was sweet. I’m not at all unsettled or insulted by it. Just, just stay here. We’ll switch back in a little bit, probably. She just needs a moment.”

“A moment for what?” Duncan asked after sorting through everything Bridgette said. He made a mental note to file the MILF thing away for later, but right now there were bigger fish to fry.

Bridgette thought this over for a minute. On one hand, she didn’t want to betray Courtney’s trust by telling Duncan anything. On the other, she hadn’t made any promises not to. She settled on telling a half-truth, “she realized something.”

“What’d she realize?”

“Oh you know,” Bridgette said, vaguely waving her hand, “stuff.”

Duncan studied her face, looking for any cracks. She looked nervous, and he knew if he kept pushing she would eventually tell him, “what kind of stuff?”

“Stuff about, about,” Bridgette closed her eyes and wished for the ground to swallow her up. Last time she checked she was great at coming up with things on the fly. Either that, or she usually wasn’t trying to hide things from people as intimidating or perceptive as Duncan.

“About what, Malibu? Just tell me. You know you’re close to cracking.”

Bridgette had to admit he was right, and she decided that she better start coming up with one hell of an apology, “okay. She realized that you might be right, and that I might be right, and that Geoff might be right. And that she might be wrong. Please don’t say anything about this to her. Technically I didn’t tell her I wouldn’t tell you, but I probably shouldn’t have.”

Duncan figured it out immediately, “so, I might be right? Could this have anything to do with her feelings about a certain smoking hot delinquent?”

“Uhm, maybe?” Bridgette answered, but it was clear he was right. Her nervousness, while still there, presented itself in a different way. She kept sneaking glances at Courtney as if she was about to come over and find out what she was up to.

“So that’s a yes,” Duncan said, a smug smile on his lips, “thanks, Malibu.”

“You’re welcome,” Bridgette replied before she could stop herself. Then, “wait no, you’re not welcome! Courtney’s going to be mad at me now. Please don’t tell her I said anything. Please just be cool about this.”

Duncan laughed, “sure thing. So, how long until you think until she admits it to me? Because, while I’m glad she told you, it doesn’t really do me any good.”

“I don’t know,” Bridgette said without thinking, “I don’t think she’s worked through it at all, and I think that’s kinda important to her. Wait. I’ve already told you too much. Let’s just work in silence.”

Duncan laughed again but went along with Bridgette’s suggestion, mostly because they only had an hour left and he really needed to get this spaghetti sauce done. Plus, there wasn’t much for the two of them to talk about outside of Geoff and Courtney. They weren’t exactly the closest teammates, despite being in the same alliance. However, when it got down to thirty minutes, Duncan decided Courtney had had enough time. It was time for her and Bridgette to switch back.

“Go back to Geoff,” Duncan ordered, “tell Courtney to come over here. She said she would boil the spaghetti, and it’s time.”

“Uh, sure,” Bridgette said. Admittedly she did want to see how Geoff and Courtney were doing on the cannoli. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust them, it was just that she didn’t trust them with this.

As Bridgette made her way back to Geoff and Courtney, she saw a very frustrated and worn down DJ helping them. “Wait, what?” she heard Geoff ask, to which DJ just sighed in reply.

“Hey guys,” Bridgette greeted. Geoff and Courtney both gave her warm smiles, and DJ looked thankful for another person, “I’m here to trade back with Courtney. Apparently it’s time for her to boil the spaghetti.”

“Really?” Courtney asked, her smile fading into a small frown, “can’t you do it? Geoff and I are doing some good work here.”

“No y’all aren’t,” DJ muttered while Bridgette shook her head, “nope. Duncan says you have to do it. Sorry, Court.”

Courtney sighed, “are you sure?” Bridgette nodded, “fine. Tell me it’ll be okay.”

“It’ll be okay.” Bridgette complied, “now go.”

“Okay, fine, good luck on the cannoli, Bridge, they’re actually really hard to make,” and with that, Courtney went.

As she walked over to the stove, Courtney did her best to stay calm. There was no reason to freak out. Duncan was the same as he always was. She was the same as she always was. While she was with Geoff and DJ she did some serious thinking about Duncan and about her and about the two of them, concluding that Bridgette was right, she’s liked him for so long. There were so many more moments when she enjoyed his company than when she didn’t. So, nothing had changed, and she shouldn’t act like it had.

Duncan was stirring the spaghetti sauce at the stove when she reached him. She stood next to him and shyly greeted him, “hi.”

“Princess, hey,” Duncan returned, draping an arm around her shoulder. The physical touch was nice, so much more now that she finally realized how she felt. “How was Geoff? Did he compare you to a MILF, too?”

“No,” Courtney answered, letting out a soft giggle and allowing herself to scoot a little closer to Duncan, “he was fine. Did you know it’s really hard to make cannoli?”

Duncan laughed, “it’s not that hard, but sure. You know how to boil spaghetti right?”

“Uhm. Probably?” Courtney said, her answer coming out more as a question, “I just put water in a pot and then put the spaghetti in the pot and then turn the stove on, right?”

“Right enough,” Duncan agreed before explaining the more detailed process of cooking spaghetti (which wasn’t that detailed at all.) He already had a filled pot of water on the stove, so Courtney just had to wait for it to start boiling before doing the hard part (which wasn’t that hard at all.)

While they waited, Duncan used this time to try to get a confession out of Courtney. She was already being less difficult than she usually was, but an actual confession would make it real, “what’re you thinking about, Court?”

Courtney shrugged before answering, “nothing. Just, uh, how lucky I am to be on this team with everyone.”

Duncan smiled at her, “everyone, huh?” Courtney nodded. “I think so, too. Wanna know what I’m thinking about?”

“Sure. You’re going to tell me no matter what, so.”

Duncan laughed, “right you are. And I was thinking about how nice this all is.”

“All what?” Courtney asked before noticing that the water was boiling. She sighed and pulled herself out of Duncan’s grasp so that she could add the spaghetti to the water.

“You know, all this,” Duncan answered as Courtney did what she needed to. Once she finished, she turned to face him, and, judging by her expression, she did not know, “you know. Us.” Courtney’s eyes widened, and she opened her mouth, but Duncan continued before she could get anything out, “I mean, how nice you and me working together is. I said it before, and I’ll say it again. We make a good team. I work better with you than I did with Malibu, anyway.”

“Oh,” Courtney said, nodding to herself, “I agree.”

While Courtney and Duncan worked to finish the spaghetti dish and continued to talk around what they both knew was true, Lindsay watched in realization and intrigue. Courtney was considering it! After she said she would never consider it this morning! This was a new development.

“She’s considering it!” Lindsay said to no one in particular.

From next to her, Gwen gave her confused look, “who’s considering what?”

Lindsay quickly put a hand over her mouth. She wasn’t about to sell out her new friend to a girl who probably didn’t like her all that much, “uhm, no one is considering anything?”

“Right,” Gwen deadpanned, “whatever.”

The last ten minutes of the challenge went by without incident for both teams. Then, it was time for Chris to judge their creations. In the end, the Killer Bass came out of it with 25 points, each dish pleasing to Chris. However, for the Screaming Gophers, tragedy struck. Owen ate all the ribs and the dessert was not edible. They came out with only 12 points. It was them who would have to vote someone off tonight.

The Killer Bass walked back to their cabin as a team, celebrating their win. They were all excited they wouldn’t have to vote someone out tonight and even more excited to finally have the player advantage for the first time all summer. Plus, it would be nice to finally have a real meal for once. Bridgette and Courtney walked in the middle, the guys surrounding them. Geoff and DJ were on the opposite side of Bridgette, and Duncan had an arm slung around Courtney. Harold and Sadie trailed behind them by a few meters, walking relatively closer to everyone than they usually did.  

Once they got back to the cabin, Bridgette pulled Courtney away from Duncan and walked her into the cabin. It was time for her to find out what exactly the CIT meant when she told her she thought she liked Duncan. The guys laughed at how fast it happened before entering their own cabin to get ready for the reward.

The Screaming Gophers did not feel the same excitement. The walk back to their cabin was tension-filled. No one said anything to one another, and Gwen had to excuse herself so that she could tell Trent they lost. They were about to be down a player for the first time all summer, and it was clear they couldn’t work as a team. Something had to change, and they all knew what it was, even though they knew it couldn’t happen tonight.

After the marshmallow ceremony, Lindsay found herself reflecting on how rough the night had been so far. First, Heather threated to vote her out, then she made her vote out Beth, the only teammate she had made any real connection to, and she was still super mad about being locked in the refrigerator. No one was talking to each other, and the tension in the cabin was so thick. It made her sick.

Lindsay knew what she wanted to do. She wanted to get out of there, see if the bass girls would let her spend the night. Sadie had always been friendly with her, and Bridgette and Courtney were really nice to her that morning. She knew it was probably a little forward, but she grabbed her pillow and blanket and headed for the door.

“Uhm, where do you think you’re going?” Lindsay heard Heather ask as she touched the doorknob. She turned so that she could face her teammate. She had expected getting away from Heather would be the hardest part of this.

“Out?” Lindsay tried, but it was clear by the expression on Heather’s face she would have to do better than that.

Heather stood up from her bed and stalked over to Lindsay. She crossed her arms over her chest before saying, “why are you bringing your sleeping stuff?”

Lindsay looked at the ground, trying to gain the confidence she needed to tell Heather to just back up. She looked up and around the room and saw that Leshawna was ready to come to her defense. She nodded to herself before answering, “because I’m going to sleep somewhere else. Everyone in here it too angry, and I don’t like it.”

Heather gasped, taking a step back, “no you’re not. You’re staying here. Where would you even go?”

“Well, uhm, I was going to try the bass girls. They’ve been really nice to me,” Lindsay said, hoping Heather would just let this go. She didn’t.

“When have you even talked to them, Lindsay? What have I told you about interacting with the other team?”

Lindsay chewed her lip as the thought about the best way to answer this. Heather was angrier now than she had been before, and Lindsay was scared she would find some way to get everyone to vote her off next. However, before she could say anything, Leshawna spoke up, “girl, let Lindsay live. If she wants to get away from all this tension, which I do not blame her for, you’re going to let her.”

Heather turned and narrowed her eyes and Leshawna, “and why should I listen to you?”

“Because if you don’t, tonight is going to be a lot worse for you than you thought it’d be. I’m not scared of you,” Leshawna said before stepping past Heather so that she stood in front of Lindsay, “girl, go. Get out of here, okay? We’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” Lindsay mouthed to Leshawna before addressing everyone, “so, I’m going to go now. Bye!”

Lindsay opened the door before anyone had a chance to say anything else. She didn’t want to have to deal with any more negative energy tonight. As she walked over to the Killer Bass cabin, she rehearsed what she was going to tell them when she asked to spend the night. She knew Courtney was probably going to be the hardest to convince, and she was trying to figure out what the best thing to say to her would be. Lindsay knew they had every right to turn her away, but she sincerely hoped that wouldn’t happen.

When she reached the cabin, she stood in front of the door she thought belonged to girls and took a deep breath before knocking. Lindsay heard some shuffling around and pretty soon Bridgette opened the door. The surfer took one look at Lindsay’s stressed out features and the sleeping gear in her arms and ushered her in, keeping a hand on her arm.

“Lindsay! Are you okay?” Bridgette asked, her voice full of compassion, “do you need a place to stay tonight?”

And just like that, all her worries faded away, “yes, please. Heather’s really mad and so is everyone else, and I couldn’t deal with it anymore. Is it okay if I stay here?”

“Of course it’s okay!” Bridgette said, still comfortingly touching her arm, “I mean, as long as Sadie says it’s okay.”

Lindsay took this chance to look around the cabin and found Sadie lying on her bed. She didn’t see Courtney. Sadie stood up and walked over to where Bridgette and Lindsay were standing. Then she pulled Lindsay into an excited hug, “yes! It’ll be like a little sleep over! Oh my gosh, it’s going to be so fun! Wait. What about Courtney? She might not like it.”

Bridgette laughed and waved a dismissive hand, “oh, don’t worry about Courtney. She’ll be fine. If she has a problem with it, she can get over it. Anyone is always welcome here.”

“Thank you so much,” Lindsay said, smiling at the bass girls, “I really appreciate it.”

“It’s no problem!” Bridgette assured, “let’s see if we can’t get you to feel better! We have left over dessert from the reward and nail polish and magazines.”

As Bridgette and Sadie continued to explain what all they could do, Lindsay couldn’t help but smile. This was the most comfortable she’d felt all summer, and she was grateful for the chance to relax. She should have seeked Bridgette and Courtney out way sooner, there were so many times before this she wished she could get away from everyone. They settled on painting each other’s nails and reading articles from magazines. Thirty minutes passed before Lindsay started really wondering about Courtney, though, and she had to ask.

“So, where is Courtney?” Lindsay asked.

Sadie, who was painting her toenails, shifted her attention towards Lindsay’s and shrugged, “you know, I’m not really sure. She said she needed a minute after the reward, but that was like an hour ago. Oh no, do you think she’s okay?”

“She’s okay, Sadie,” Bridgette said from her spot on her bed, “I think I know what she’s doing. Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay,” Sadie and Lindsay both agreed before going back to nail painting.

Thirty more minutes passed before Courtney finally returned. Bridgette was in the middle of a dramatic reading of some Teen Vogue article when the CIT hastily entered the cabin. She looked close to tears and her hands were shaking. Bridgette put the magazine down, and all three girls waited for her to say something. Courtney quickly noticed Lindsay was in the room and tried her best to plaster on a smile, “oh, hello Lindsay. I see your pillow and blanket are here. Are you spending the night?”

“Yes?” Lindsay answered, “are you okay? You look a little, I don’t know.”

Courtney continued smiling her obviously fake smile and nodded, “yes. I’m doing great, Lindsay. Just a little tired, but fine.”

Lindsay opened her mouth to say something, but then the guys cabin door slammed shut, and Courtney’s composure broke completely. The smile melted off her face and tears starting streaming down her face. Bridgette was the first one up, quickly crossing the room so that she could pull her best friend into a hug. Sadie and Lindsay watched awkwardly from the former’s bed, and the gopher wondered if maybe she should go back to her own cabin. She got up to gather her stuff, but Courtney’s voice stopped her.

“You don’t have to go. I know things are probably a little tense in your cabin. You guys locked Heather in a freezer after all. I’m fine, I’m really fine. I promise.”

Bridgette loosened her grip around Courtney and leaned back so that she could place her hands on the CIT’s shoulders, “you’re not fine. What’s wrong? Was that who I think it is? What happened?”

“Nothing,” Courtney blatantly lied, “and if you think it’s, uhm, DJ then yes. We, uhm, just got in a really heated discussion about, uhm, sharks. It got personal? But I’m fine. I just need to calm down. I think he’s mad because I, uhm, said that sharks are dumb. It was a mistake. He really, really likes sharks, That’s all.”

Lindsay knew Courtney had to be lying, but Bridgette was knowingly nodding along with everything she was saying. She snuck a glance at Sadie, who looked just as confused as she felt, but neither girl made any move to dispute what Courtney had said. Instead, they let Bridgette take this one, “oh, Court, I’m sorry. I hope you can the two of you can, uhm, come to an agreement concerning sharks soon.”

“Me too,” Courtney agreed before wiping the tears off her face and pulling out of Bridgette’s grasp completely, “so, I see nail polish. Do you want to paint my nails, Lindsay? You can pick the color.”

After that, things settled down significantly, but there was still an awkwardness in the air. Courtney was clearly upset about whatever thing happened before she came in, but she kept insisting everything was okay. Everyone did their best to make her feel better without being obvious about it, but she focused all her attention on making sure Lindsay had a good night away from Heather.

In the end, Lindsay did. When everyone finally got in bed and the lights were turned off, she thanked everyone again for letting her stay. They all told her no problem before the four drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have If You Can't Take The Heat... This is where things start picking up a little more. Also, can you tell my love language is physical touch?? As always, leave a kudos or a comment if you want! I'd really appreciate it.


	5. Figure it Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the first half of Who Can You Trust? I had to split it in two because I kind of went off while writing it.

Geoff dragged himself to the arts and crafts tent, DJ sleepily trailing behind him. Neither of them saw any reason to get up at 6:30, but Bridgette had insisted. Something about making sure there wasn’t some big Duncan-Courtney blow out in the middle of the challenge, which would admittedly suck.

In the three days between the previous challenge and this one, Courtney and Duncan had been making things difficult for their alliance mates. It was evident that something happened between them after the reward three days ago, but neither shared much information with their friends. Bridgette had been able to piece together that it had something to do with their questionable relationship status, but the details were still fuzzy.

Courtney cycled between absolutely heartbroken and scarily angry. Duncan was just angry. When the two had to be in the same place, they would ignore each other until they couldn’t, then they would bail so that they could scream at each other in private. The one time they didn’t manage to find a second location before everything bubbled over had been brutal. The words they lobbed at each other had been so harsh and uncomfortably intimate. It left Courtney in tears, breaking down in the middle of the dining hall, and Duncan had kicked a stool as he stormed out. 

The guys entered the arts and crafts tent to find Bridgette, who was more awake than she had any right being this early in the morning after a late night, waiting for them. “Boys,” she greeted, sending them a small smile, “how are you? Did you sleep well?”

“Tired,” was all DJ said as he flung himself onto the closest seat, “but I slept well enough. You?”

Bridgette shrugged, “I’m doing fine. I didn’t sleep much. Between Courtney crying for two hours, and me stressing about how terrible today is going to go, I got to sleep maybe four hours? But I’m fine, it’s fine.” Bridgette started pacing around the table, “guys, I’m really worried about them. What are we going to do?”

DJ and Geoff exchanged a look, “I dunno, Bridge. Guess we just have to keep them away from each other?” the blond offered.

“I mean, yes. Keep them away from each other if we _can_ ,” Bridgette agreed, still pacing, “but it’s challenge day. It’s not crazy to think they might have to interact at some point. What then? And what about later? We can’t keep them away from each other for the rest of the game. At some point they’re going to have to talk about everything that’s been going on, or else both of their games are over. That wouldn’t be good for any of us.” She was close to tears.

DJ sighed before standing up and walking over to Bridgette. He placed a hand on her shoulder so that she would stop pacing, then pulled her into a comforting hug, “I know Bridge. It’s hard. I don’t like it either. But you can’t stress about this so much, it’s not good.

“Yeah, Bridge,” Geoff interjected, making his way over to where his teammates are standing, “you gotta calm down, or whatever, think this through. I know you’ve got the answer in that brain of yours. You just gotta, I dunno, find it.”

Bridgette took a deep breath and pulled away from DJ as she thought this over. As far as she was concerned, it would take nothing short of a miracle for everyone to get out of this challenge unscathed. DJ and Geoff stood on either side of her, offering encouraging smiles. There had to be some way to run interference between Courtney and Duncan without disrupting the entire challenge, and then there was trying to figure out a way to encourage them to talk through everything. It was all so much.

“I guess, if they have to be together during the challenge, one of us just has to make sure we’re with them. We can’t give them an opportunity to self-destruct further than they already have,” Bridgette said, “me or DJ, if that’s okay with you?” DJ nodded, “and then we have figure out some way to get them to talk after the challenge. Like actually talk without screaming.”

Meanwhile, Courtney stood a few meters away from the Killer Bass table, clutching her breakfast and contemplating her next move. Harold and Sadie were sitting at one end of the table and Duncan at the other. She could sit with the teammates she didn’t particularly like or know very well but were ultimately okay people, sit by herself and wait for Bridgette, or sit with the person who had made the past three days miserable for her. The obvious choice was Harold and Sadie or wait for Bridgette. So, why did she find herself gravitating towards Duncan’s end of the table?

Courtney knew nothing good could come from this, but she couldn’t stop herself. She was tired of the constant sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach and the possibility of an exhausting argument at any time. She wanted everything to go back to normal with Duncan. She wanted to be his friend again and then some, but she didn’t know how to do it. She didn’t know how to apologize. 

Duncan waited for Courtney to take the seat across from him. Though he had yet to look up from his breakfast, he had felt her presence as soon as she entered the room, and he knew she wanted everything that was wrong between them to just go away. He knew because he wanted that, too. Finally, she pulled the stool across from him out from under the table and took a seat, and he looked up to face her.

Neither said anything for several minutes, instead they just studied each other. The first thing Duncan noticed was just how exhausted Courtney looked, as if she hadn’t slept at all over the past three days. Duncan’s face betrayed no emotions, and his features were neither hard nor soft. Courtney didn’t know how he felt about her being there. She gave him a weak smile, trying to communicate that she came in peace, but it didn’t reach her eyes. This caused him to sigh and reach across the table to grab her hand. She didn’t move it away.

“Hi,” Courtney murmured, something Duncan wouldn’t have heard if not for the complete lack of sound in the room. All eyes were on them, waiting in anticipation for something to happen. Courtney and Duncan were the biggest source of drama at the moment, and everyone wanted a piece of it.

Duncan broke eye contact so that he could glare at the Screaming Gophers over Courtney’s shoulder. He didn’t need anyone knowing their personal business any more than they already did. Finally, Lindsay got the hint, “wow! It’s really nice weather were having today! Don’t you think so?” Then, just like that, all the attention shifted to her.

“Hi,” Duncan said, returning his eyes to her and squeezing her hand, “I, uhm, so, uh, how are, uhm.” He ran his free hand through his mohawk, “shit, Court, I don’t know what I’m supposed to say here.”

“I don’t either,” Courtney admitted, looking down at her breakfast, “can we just, uhm, can we not be mad at each other anymore? I’m tired of being mad. I miss you.”

Duncan nodded. He hated how small and sad she sounded, and he hated that it was his fault. He squeezed her hand again, “of course, Princess.” Then, after a moment of silence, “I miss you, too.”

At the use of her pet name, Courtney looked up. She hadn’t heard it in a few days, and she hadn’t realized how much she missed it. It was so good to hear it again, it made her think that maybe things were going to be okay. But first, “so, we should, uhm, we should probably talk, right?”

“Right,” Duncan confirmed, “not here, later. Eat first, and then we can, uh, find somewhere, okay?”

Courtney nodded and squeezed his hand before dropping it. She began eating the scrabbled eggs Chef had prepared. For the first time since the last challenge, she was content. Duncan rested his elbows on the table and his chin on a fist. He was done with his breakfast, allowing him to fully take in the sight in front of him. Courtney was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Some of the sadness that had been present when she first sat down was melting away, and he couldn’t help but smile. He couldn’t believe he let the past three days play out like they did.

The dining hall door opened, and Duncan shifted his attention to the newcomers. It could only be his remaining alliance mates as they were the only ones missing from the room, excluding Chris. Sure enough, Bridgette, DJ, and Geoff were all standing still, just past the doorway. Each of them were staring at him and Courtney in relief mixed with frustration. Then, Bridgette broke out in a huge smile and started towards the serving line. Great, just what they needed. Nosy teammates.

“Court, hey,” Courtney looked up from her breakfast, “you wanna cut out? I’d like to skip this interrogation.” Duncan pointed behind his shoulder, and Courtney saw Bridgette quickly approaching them. Her eyes were twinkling with joy. This wasn’t going to be fun. Courtney nodded and stood up, Duncan joining her.

As they gathered their leftover breakfast, Bridgette reached the table, “hey, Court! Leaving already?”

Courtney gave Duncan a questioning look. What was she supposed to say here? She felt bad about leaving her friend, but she really did not want to deal with Bridgette’s inevitable questions. Duncan placed a hand on the small of Courtney’s back before answering the surfer’s question, “sorry, Malibu. We’ve got more important things to do.” Then, before Bridgette could ask any more questions, he guided Courtney away. Courtney gave Bridgette an apologetic smile over her shoulder and waved a hand goodbye.

Despite being left alone at the table, Bridgette smiled to herself. Clearly, Courtney and Duncan were on good terms. This was better than she could have asked for. A minute later DJ and Geoff sat across from her, sending her half-hearted glares.

“So they’re friends again,” DJ said, an uncharacteristic amount of snark in his voice. Bridgette wasn’t offended.

“I think so,” Bridgette agreed, “they didn’t really tell me anything. They were in a hurry to get away, I don’t think they wanted to deal with us yet.”

DJ rolled his eyes, “I wouldn’t want to deal with us either,” he muttered under his breath, causing Bridgette to shake her head, “I heard that!”

In the arts and crafts tent, the Killer Bass Five’s favorite spot to chat, Courtney and Duncan were having the conversation they needed to have a long time ago. They were both seated on the table, facing each other, and Duncan was holding one of Courtney’s hands between both of his.

“I’m really sorry for walking away from you the other night,” Courtney quietly apologized, “I just, I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t think.”

Duncan shook his head, “don’t apologize. I kind of sprung it on you. I, uh, I’m sorry for not giving you a chance to explain yourself, though. It was shitty of me.”

“Yeah, it kind of was,” Courtney acknowledged, “but I understand why you did it, and I probably would have done the same thing. I did a lot of shitty things, too. I’m sorry for all of them, all the things I said.”

“God, Court, me too,” Duncan said, releasing her hand and sliding off the table. He placed a hand on her shoulder and turned her forward before slightly stepping between her legs. “Can we just forget all of it? I think I speak for both of us when I say these past three days have been Hell.”

Courtney nodded, “yes, please.” Then she took a deep breath and carefully looked him in the eyes, “Duncan, I, uh, I missed you so much. And, uhm, I like you.”

Duncan couldn’t help himself when he closed the distance between them, pulling her off of the table and into a hug. It was the first time she had said it to him, and it felt great. He knew she liked him, known it for a while, but it was so different hearing it. It made it real. Courtney returned the hug, clasping her arms together behind his back and pressing a cheek to his shoulder. This was nice.

“Yeah?” Duncan asked, to which Courtney just lifted her head and nodded, “so are we doing this? You and me?”

“I want to try,” Courtney admitted, “but can we, I don’t know, just take it slow? See where it takes us? I’ve never done this before.”

Duncan gave her a genuine smile, that answer was good enough for him. “Definitely, Court. Not too much at once, I get it.”

“Thanks,” Courtney said, returning the smile. Then, she pulled herself out of his embrace and grabbed one of his hands instead, “I want to finish getting ready. I don’t know how much time we have before the challenge, and I don’t want to have to rush. You can walk me back to the cabin.”

“Oh, I can?” Duncan asked, a hint of laughter in his voice. Courtney just rolled her eyes in response. She made the switch from vulnerable to completely in control so quickly, and he wouldn’t have expected anything else from her. “All right, Princess, let’s go.” Then, the two of them were off, Duncan leading Courtney out of the arts and crafts tent and to the cabin, both thinking this was how it was supposed to be.

The campers finished their breakfasts and went about their morning routines. Over the loudspeaker, Chris announced that the challenge would start at 9:30, giving them about an hour to do whatever they needed. It was just the right amount of time for everyone.

During this time, the Screaming Gophers held a team meeting, hoping to get all the residual tension from the past few challenge cleared up before having to work together again. The last thing any of them wanted was to lose for the fourth time in a row. The Killer Bass didn’t do much of anything except get ready. Bridgette tried pumping Courtney for information she would not give, and DJ and Geoff took a power nap.

Eventually, everyone met at the mountain side for the challenge briefing. It took Chris everything had not to burst out laughing in the middle of explaining everything. Today was all about trust, something both teams had been severely lacking recently, and he was excited to force incompatible campers to work together. Chris called up Heather and Gwen for the Screaming Gophers and DJ and Duncan for the Killer Bass, and they started the challenge.

Courtney watched intently as DJ tried to make his way up the mountain. She could feel the curious looks Bridgette and Geoff were sending to each other, the back of her head, and Duncan’s way. She knew they wanted to know what happened this morning, but she really didn’t want to get into it. There was a challenge going on, and it wasn’t their business anyway. She winced when Gwen hit the ground but was pleased DJ was still going strong. Chris pointed his hot sauce gun at Duncan, and, when it didn’t affect him, Courtney smiled to herself and clapped.

“Good work, DJ!” Courtney shouted, cupping her hands around her face, “keep going! You’re doing great!” She was silent for a moment before adding, “you too, Duncan! Keep up the good work both of you!” The rest of the Killer Bass were also yelling encouraging things. DJ looked over his shoulder and smiled at his teammates, “thanks,” he shouted down at them before returning his attention to the mountain.

As the challenge continued, Gwen quickly made up the distance she fell. While DJ’s large stature forced him to move slowly and carefully, she was able to move her body in ways he couldn’t. The Killer Bass continued to encourage from the side lines. DJ was still ahead, and they wanted it to stay that way.

Then, two things happened: first, Gwen finally overtook DJ; second, Heather pulled a rope, tearing Gwen’s skirt off. The ripped skirt landed on DJ’s face, causing him to freak out. When he got the skirt off him and looked up, the sight of Gwen in her panties caused him to freak out even more. He did his best not to look, but it was right there. After a minute of flailing, DJ finally let go of the mountain, causing him to fall. The rope, however, tangled itself around Duncan’s ankle, and he was pulled up. They met on the side of the mountain just as Gwen reached the top.

The Screaming Gophers started cheering loudly. This was their first victory in quite some time, and, while it was still just part one of the challenge, it was the encouragement they needed to believe they could win again. “And the Screaming Gophers take the first point!” Chris announced before sending Chef to detangle DJ and Duncan, “up next we have Trent, Lindsay, Bridgette, and Geoff! Challenge starts in an hour in the dining hall! No spectators allowed.”

After Chris finished giving his orders, Courtney let out a frustrated groan. So much for maintaining a lead. She couldn’t believe that two friends, two alliance mates even, were beaten by two girls who could hardly stand each other. It was embarrassing, and it did not bode well for the rest of the challenge. Their winning streak was over, it just had to be. She felt Bridgette place a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she turned to face her friend.

“So are we going to vote out Harold or Sadie tonight?” Courtney asked, as if they had already lost, “because I was thinking it might be time to cut Sadie loose. At least Harold is somewhat competent.”

Bridgette let out a soft laugh at her friend’s dramatics, “Court, we haven’t lost yet. We don’t have to discuss voting strategies yet.”

“Yes, I understand,” Courtney said, “but we’re going to. Today. It’s not looking good for us.”

“There’s been one challenge, Courtney. We don’t know how many are left, we don’t know what they’re going to be. So we lost the first point, big deal.” Bridgette motioned Geoff over, and he quickly joined them. “Geoff and I have the next challenge. Geoff and I work well together, right?”

“Uh, yeah,” Geoff answered, a little confused as to what was happening. Courtney was obviously on edge about something, what he didn’t know, but Bridgette didn’t seem concerned. In fact, it was almost as if she was amused by the CIT’s discomfort. “What’s goin’ on, ladies? Everyone okay?”

Bridgette nodded her head while Courtney shook hers. Geoff looked between the two girls, trying to figure out which one he should believe. Sensing his confusion, the surfer placed an arm on his bicep, “we’re fine, Geoff. Court’s just freaking out about the challenge. Thinks we’re going to lose for sure. You know, the usual.”

Geoff did know. He didn’t understand it, but Courtney was notorious within their alliance and even the Killer Bass as a whole for being pessimistic during challenges. While she was great at motivating her teammates, she wasn’t great at believing in them. “Why do you think we’re gonna lose, Court? That’s not very team spirit of you. You gotta have faith,” he chastised.

“I don’t _think_ we’re going to lose, Geoff,” Courtney said, causing Geoff to give her a bright smile. Bridgette, however, knew better. She just sighed and waited. “I know we’re going to lose.” There is was.

“Court,” Bridgette started, frustration resonating in her voice, “no we’re not. So DJ and Duncan couldn’t pull it off. Doesn’t mean Geoff and I can’t, and it’s honestly a little insulting that you believe in us so little. Geoff and I are going to get this point. We’re going to tie it up. Then, we’re going to get the rest of the points and win this challenge.”

Courtney looked at the ground, reaching a hand over her stomach to grab her other arm. It’s not that she didn’t believe in her teammates because she absolutely did, especially in Bridgette. She just couldn’t turn off the part of her brain that told her nothing would be alright. There was always too much pressure. “You’re right, Bridgette. Sorry. I do believe in you. I do.” She lifted her eyes so that she could look at the blond pair, “we don’t know what’s going to happen. We could still very well win this.”

Bridgette smiled at her friend, “I know, and I know you know it too. Like Geoff said, you just have to have faith.” Glancing over the CIT’s shoulder, she saw DJ and Duncan approaching them. Each step they took was punctuated with a wince, and they were both rubbing sore body parts. “Hey guys,” she greeted them, “tough break out there. How are you doing?”

“I’ve been better,” DJ admitted once they reached the group. DJ took a spot next to Geoff, and Duncan stopped by Courtney, sliding an arm around her back and resting a hand on her hip. “My arms hurt more than they have in a long time, but it’s not too bad. I’ll probably just be sore for a few days, then, by next challenge, I’ll be good as new. So, what’s next?”

“Bridge and I!” Geoff exclaimed, grabbing the surfer’s hand and lifting it in the air, “dunno what we’re doing, but we’re gonna crush it, and we _all_ think so!”

Courtney rolled her eyes at Geoff’s obvious drag, and Bridgette sent a playful smile to the CIT. Geoff was grinning proudly. DJ and Duncan shared a look, trying to make sense of what was happening. Clearly, something went on between the three before they got there, something probably in the veins of Courtney being negative. Duncan pulled her closer so that their hips were touching, and she sent him a questioning look. He just grinned at her, “you don’t think we’re going to win,” he accused, causing Courtney to fondly shake her head.

Their teammates watched this play out with unhidden fascination. Yesterday they weren’t even speaking to each other, and now they were closer than they had been all summer. It was a good look on them, both significantly lighter than they were the previous days.

Courtney opened her mouth to deny Duncan’s claim, but Bridgette beat her to it, “Court didn’t think we we’re going to win. Now she does. I convinced her. You’re welcome, everyone.”

“Bridgette, I said there was a chance we could still win. I’m not saying it with certainty. We could still lose,” Courtney bluntly said. Then, she noticed the disappointed look in her friend’s eyes, so she backtracked, “don’t worry, though! I still believe in you and Geoff! Like he said, you’re going to, uh, crush it.”

Bridgette unapproving gaze morphed into a slightly amused expression as she shrugged, “thanks, Court. That’s really a vote of confidence.”

“No! I mean it!” Courtney said urgently, “I really do believe in you two. I believe you won’t mess it up like these two imbeciles did! Trust me!”

“Okay, I trust you,” Bridgette obliged as Duncan let out a mock offended gasp, “Princess! You wound me! I thought my ankle was going to be in the most pain after that challenge, not my heart!”

Courtney rolled her eyes at the delinquent, “shut up. This is your fault, you know.” Then she shifted her attention to DJ, “and yours. If you just got the point like you were supposed to, I wouldn’t be doubting us right now. So, there.”

“Real solid comeback, babe,” Duncan deadpanned, causing Courtney’s eyes to widen slightly and her to send Bridgette an alarmed look. “‘So, there.’ How long did it take you to think of that one?” Courtney, however, did not answer him. No, she was stuck on the word he used, _babe_. He had never called her that before, and she didn’t want to like it as much as she did. While Duncan thought nothing of that word or her not answering him, the rest of their alliance did. They all noticed her immediate reaction.

After a minute of silence, Duncan broke it. He was a little disconcerted by the curious glances Bridgette, DJ, and Geoff were giving to each other and him and Courtney. “Anyway, I’m out. Wanna get off this ankle.” He squeezed Courtney’s hip so she would look at him. She did. “Come?”

Courtney nodded before returning her attention to Bridgette and Geoff, “so I’m going to go now, but I do believe in you. Good luck. I’ll meet you outside of the dining hall after the challenge, okay?”

“Okay,” Bridgette replied, giving her a wave. Geoff just nodded, he knew most of that was for Bridgette’s sake, not his. Then, Duncan and Courtney were off.

Once Duncan and Courtney left, DJ also said his goodbyes to blond pair. He too wanted to relieve some of the pain the challenge had caused him. Left alone with Geoff, Bridgette decided they should get a head start. It would be better to get to the dining hall ridiculously early than risk being late, an influence she knew was from Courtney.

The time passed quickly. DJ had caught up with Duncan and Courtney in the guys’ cabin, the CIT soothing both of their sore body parts the best she could. Bridgette and Geoff, along with Trent and Lindsay, waited in the dining hall, both pairs discussing potential strategy, and one pair flirting while doing so. The rest of the Screaming Gophers were celebrating their point, the entire team, even Heather, sitting on their porch together. Harold and Sadie both did separate things, the former choosing to talk a walk around camp and the latter resting in her cabin. Eventually, it came time for part two of the challenge to begin.

All campers, except the ones competing, gathered outside the dining hall. During the thirty minutes it took for the challenge to be completed both teams chattered excitedly about what they thought was going on in there. When the door opened, signaling the end, everyone held their breath as they waited for Chris to tell them the winner, but their host didn’t come out. Instead, it was Chef and an intern, and they were carrying someone on a gurney. Closer observation showed it to be Trent. The Screaming Gophers collectively let out a groan. Chances were, they didn’t win this one. A few minutes later Chris came out, an excited Bridgette and Geoff and a distraught Lindsay following him.

Chris took a look around and noticed all the campers were present. They were looking at him expectantly, waiting for him to give the next directions. “Good, you’re all here. Bridgette and Geoff won the challenge, giving the Killer Bass their first point. Part three starts in an hour and a half by the cliff. Lunch is in half an hour. We’ll have Leshawna and Owen for the Screaming Gophers and Courtney and Sadie for the Killer Bass. Don’t be late.”

“We got a point, Court!” Bridgette teased once she and Geoff joined the group. She pulled Courtney into a quick hug before grabbing her shoulders and leaning back, “didn’t I tell you we’d get a point?”

Courtney rolled her eyes at her friend while their alliance mates just laughed, “yes, Bridgette. You did tell me. You were right.”

“I know,” the surfer gloated, a wide smile on her face. Then, she released Courtney and scooted over to stand by Geoff. “So, how are you feeling about the next part? You and Sadie, huh?”

“Oh God, yes,” Courtney said before letting out a small sigh and pressing a hand to her forehead, “I’m not feeling good about it, that’s for sure. I can’t believe Chris paired me with Sadie of all people! It’s a disaster waiting to happen, you know?”

Her friends all nodded. It was no secret that Courtney didn’t trust Sadie and that Sadie was a little scared of Courtney. The two were not friends, and the CIT couldn’t even remember the last time they had a one-on-one conversation. Truthfully, Courtney was impressed Chris even thought up this partnership. She wouldn’t have, but, then again, the amounts of times she forgot about Sadie was embarrassingly high. Also, she was so certain that Chris was going to bank on the whole Duncan thing she didn’t even entertain the thought she could be with someone else.

“Well, that’s kinda the point, Court,” DJ said as he patted her on the shoulder, “but I know y’all can pull it off. What’re you gonna do?”

Courtney shrugged, “I’m glad someone thinks we can get this point because I certainly don’t. And, I don’t know. I think I should probably talk to her, make sure we’re on the same page. Make sure I don’t kill her.” She shook her head, “Really? Sadie? Why?”

Bridgette reached her arm across the semi-circle the five teens had created and placed her hand on Courtney’s arm. Her friend was getting stressed out, and she didn’t like it, “Court. You’re not going to kill her, okay? Even if you want to, you won’t. Go talk to her now. It’ll be fine, I promise.”

“Thanks, Bridge,” Courtney said, giving her friend a small smile. Then she said bye to her alliance mates, giving both Bridgette and Duncan quick hugs, DJ a high-five, and Geoff a fist bump.

Once Courtney was out of earshot, Bridgette let out a loud laugh, “so we’re screwed. We all agree there’s no way we get this point?”

DJ gasped, “have some faith, Bridgette! Aren’t you the one who’s always telling Courtney not to be so negative? Those are our teammates, you know, and Courtney can do anything.”

“Yeah, not this,” Duncan said, shaking his head, “sorry DJ, but Malibu’s right on this one. One of them is going to end up hurt, and it’s not going to be Court.”

“Monsters. You’re all monsters,” DJ playfully accused as Bridgette stuck her tongue out at him, “see, Duncan agrees with me, and he would know. Him and Courtney are, uhm, help me out?” Bridgette tried. Courtney had refused to give her any details earlier, and she really wanted to know.

Duncan shook his head again, this time annoyed, “yeah, no. I’m out. Worry about yourself, okay.” And with that, he stalked away towards the woods, pulling out his pocket knife.

“Eh, it was worth a shot,” Bridgette said to no one in particular. Then she took a step back from her teammates, “hey, Deej, are you okay if Geoff and I go, too? We wanted to celebrate our win with a swimming date.”

Geoff nodded enthusiastically, and DJ just rolled his eyes at the pair, “yeah, go. Have fun you two.”

“Thanks,” Bridgette smiled, “and we’re probably going to skip out on lunch, too, so don’t worry if we’re not there.

After DJ assured them that no, he would not be worried, the pair left. They walked back to the cabin, chatting enthusiastically about their win. They had settled on a celebration swim after they won, but they both assumed they would have to wait until all the challenges were over. They were excited to be able to do it now and not miss anything. They quickly changed, and soon enough they were on their way to the lake.

“Last one there’s a rotten blowfish!” Geoff called as they ran down the dock. Bridgette smiled from in front of him. Then, he abruptly stopped. Sensing this, Bridgette turned and saw Geoff pull DJ’s bunny out of his pocket. “whoops, whoa, gotta put Bunny in a safe spot first!” He placed the animal on the lifeguard chair. Bridgette continued smiling. Even though there was no reason Geoff should even still have Bunny, it was adorable.

“You were so brave to eat that fish,” Bridgette said, causing Geoff to lean towards her, “no biggie. I knew I could trust you! You’re cool.”

Bridgette smiled at him, cool was probably the best compliment she had gotten from him all summer. It made her heart swell. A few challenges ago she wasn’t ready for anything to happen between them but now she was. If he asked, she would accept so fast, and she needed a way to show him that. However, before she could, Geoff leaned back and said, “you know what else is cool?” He ran and jumped, “whoo-hoo,” he shouted before hitting the water. Bridgette shook her head fondly and jumped in after him.

When Bridgette resurfaced, she looked around for Geoff. He was treading water a few meters away and watching her, a twinkle in his eye. The surfer swam over to him and climbed onto his back. He turned his head so that they were face to face.

“I can’t believe how beautiful this day is,” Bridgette admired, “I think this is the best day out here yet. Don’t you agree?”

Geoff nodded. Before now, today was just a regular day. Heck, it wasn’t even a regular day. It was day that started about an hour and half too early and saw him risk the chance of getting sick from some poisonous blowfish. But now, seeing how happy Bridgette was, how beautiful she looked when she wasn’t worried about challenges or Courtney or anything else, now it was the best day, at least to him.

“Heck yeah it is!” Geoff said, twisting his body and arms so that he could pull Bridgette over his shoulders, “and you know what the best part of it is?” Bridgette shook her head, “how pretty you look right now, all happy and stuff.”

“Yeah?” Bridgette asked, smiling at him and blushing.

“Yeah,” Geoff confirmed. Then he hoisted her up by the legs and held on so that she was above his head.

Bridgette knew what was coming next. She was about to be thrown across the water, and she didn’t even care. “Geoff… what are you about to do?” she asked, the tone of her voice clear she already knew.

“I dunno,” Geoff said, playing innocent, “what do you think I’m about to do?”

“I think you’re about to throw me as far as you can. That right?”

Geoff hummed as if he was thinking it over before breaking into a mischievous grin, “uh, yeah, Bridge!” He lifted her up a little higher and released her. She screamed at she flew through the air. Bridgette landed with a satisfying splash, and Geoff laughed as he swam over to her.

However, instead of resurfacing, Bridgette stayed under the water. She could see Geoff swimming over to her, and, once he was close enough, she grabbed his ankle and pulled him under with her. He floundered around for a few seconds before he spotted Bridgette. Then, just as she let go of his ankle, he grabbed her around the middle and pushed them to the surface.

“What was that for, Bridge?” Geoff asked once there was no longer water restricting him.

Bridgette gave him a playful smile and wrapped her arms around his neck, “I think you know,” she flirted before dunking him back under the water.

Over the course of the next hour, the blond couple continued playing around in the water. Both of them were having a great time, the cool water and warm summer air allowing them to forget they were on a crappy island competing in a crappy game for the time being. Bridgette, who was both a surfer and lifeguard, swam circles around Geoff as he tried to catch up.

After the two finally wore themselves out, Bridgette lazily swam over to Geoff and loosely wrapped herself around him, “I think maybe it’s time to get out.”

“Yeah, probably,” Geoff agreed. He swam them over the dock and lifted Bridgette up so that she could grab on and pull herself up. Once she was situated, she reached down to help him out of the water.

“This was really fun, Geoff,” Bridgette said as she picked up her towel, “I’m glad I got to spend this time with you.”

“Me too, Bridge,” Geoff agreed, looking around for his towel. Then, realizing he forgot it just shrugged and began shaking the water off.

Bridgette watched in affection as he shook the water off him. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a snake slithering up the lifeguard chair. That wasn’t good, Bunny was sitting in that chair! She loudly gasped and, once she had Geoff’s attention, pointed to what was happening.

“No! Bunny!” Geoff exclaimed as he ran over to the animals. But alas, it was too late. The snake unhinged his jaw and bit around Bunny. Even though it was impossible, the snake grinned smugly at Geoff and began slithering away. The blond creeped up slowly, ready to grab it and somehow force bunny out it, but an eagle swooped down out of no where and grabbed the snake with his talons.

 Bridgette watched the scene unfold before her in slow motion, “Geoff! The eagle! Get it!”

“How?” he asked, laying on the ground and rubbing his head.

“I don’t know! Grab him by the feet or the wings or something!” She ordered.

The eagle landed on the edge of the dock, and Geoff stalked over to him, “that’s it. Here eagle, eagle.” However, before he made it even half way down the dock, a shark popped out of the water and ate the eagle, snake, and Bunny, along with part of the dock. “Awe, come on!” Geoff shouted, stomping his foot.

The pair looked at each other for a minute, unsure of what to do. DJ was going to be so upset.

“Geoff! How could you let that happen? Why did you even still have Bunny? Oh, poor animal! Poor DJ,” Bridgette rapidly said, trying to come up with a solution.

Geoff shrugged, “sorry. I didn’t mean for it to happen! I can’t control wild animals! And I just forgot to give him back. There was so much going on.”

Bridgette glared at him, “there was nothing going on! After we finished our challenge you should have given him back. Or, better yet, when you changed to go swimming you should have just left him in the cabin! There was no reason to bring Bunny to the lake with us!” She started pacing, “oh, Geoff, what are we going to do? I can’t believe this happened. And during a trust challenge, no less! Oh, DJ is never going to trust us after this.”

“Bridge, calm down,” Geoff instructed, running over to the surfer and placing his hands on her shoulders to stop her.

“Don’t tell me to calm down!” she seethed, swatting off Geoff’s hands, “this is your fault! Oh, what are we going to do?”

Geoff shrugged again, “I don’t know, Bridge! But all this worrying isn’t going to help you figure it out. Maybe someone else will know what to do? Like Court?”

Bridgette’s eyes lit up, and she pulled Geoff into a hug. He was taken aback by her sudden change in mood. “Geoff! That’s not a terrible idea! Courtney always knows what to do! Oh, thank you!”

“Uh, no problema. Happy I could help!”

Bridgette and Geoff rushed back to the cabin to change. Neither of them knew how much time there was before the next part of the challenge, and Bridgette needed to find Courtney before it started. They quickly changed, and Bridgette set off to find her best friend.

Finally, after five minutes of searching, Bridgette found Courtney and Sadie by the side of the cliff. The surfer grabbed Courtney’s arm, causing her to look at her. She could sense the panic radiating off her friend, and she quickly forgot her own worries about the upcoming challenge.

“Hey, Bridge, what’s up?” Courtney soothingly asked, “everything okay?”

“No!” Bridgette cried before pulling Courtney away from Sadie, “I need to talk to you!”

Courtney let Bridgette guide her to the tree line, “what’s up, Bridge?”

“A shark ate Bunny!” Bridgette cried, jumping right into it. It was pointless to tell the whole story. Courtney looked confused to as why this concerned her. “You know, DJ’s pet? His bunny? The one he found during the camping challenge?”

That seemed to do the trick. Courtney’s jaw dropped, “shit, Bridge, when? How? What are you going to do?”

Bridgette shrugged her arms, “I don’t know. Geoff thought maybe you’d know. Please tell me you know what to do.”

“Well, I’ll try to figure something out, I guess,” Courtney said, “but, but I can’t do it now. My challenge is about to start!” She shook her head, “I can’t believe a shark ate Bunny. Why was Bunny even near a shark?”

“Geoff,” Bridgette answered, and Courtney nodded knowingly. When it came to Geoff, there was no reason to question anything because it rarely made any sense. “And that’s fine. Good luck, by the way. I know you can get that point!”

“I don’t,” Courtney admitted as she started walking back to where Sadie, Chris, Leshawna, Owen, and a few other campers were gathered. DJ was among them. Bridgette took one look at him and took a deep breath. Courtney grabbed her hand, “hey, Bridge, calm down. It’ll be fine. What we really have to worry about is if I’m going to kill Sadie or not. You know, I still don’t trust her.”

Bridgette gave Courtney a weak smile, “you can do it!” she tried to encourage, “just pretend Sadie is me, okay. You trust me, right?”

“Enough,” Courtney answered honestly, “but thanks. I’ll try.”

When the friends reached the challenge area, Courtney went to stand by Sadie while Bridgette joined the other campers. DJ and Harold were the only other Killer Bass there. Soon enough, Chris was explaining the rules of the challenge. Knock an arrow off your teammates head with an apple while wearing a blindfold. Seemed simple enough. While Chris was going over everything, Courtney kept her eyes steadily focused on the path to the challenge area. Not all her teammates were there, specifically Duncan, and she wanted him here cheering her on.

Chris finished saying everything he needed to, and Duncan still wasn’t there. Courtney let out a disappointed sigh as Sadie begged to be the apple thrower. Not wanting to argue, the CIT let her. She braced herself for the oncoming attack, hoping her body wouldn’t be hit too many times. Sadie did say she was a good shot.

Meanwhile, Geoff was heading towards the challenge area. He knew he was going to be late, but that didn’t matter to him. He was too busy panicking about Bunny and DJ to care. When it all happened, Geoff was too focused on trying to calm Bridgette down that he didn’t fully recognize the finality of Bunny getting eaten by a snake, then carried away by an eagle, then eaten by a shark. However, now that he was given a moment alone, it all set in. Bunny was never coming back. No wonder Bridgette was so upset.

Geoff was looking at the ground as he went to watch the challenge, causing him to run into someone. He panicked for a moment, scared it would be DJ or someone from the other team. Luckily, when he looked, it was only Duncan.

“Hey, Dunc, man, what’s up?” Geoff greeted in a higher voice then normal, rubbing the back of his neck. Duncan narrowed his eyes at him, the blond was acting weirder than usual. “It’s, uh, a nice day were having, isn’t it?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” Duncan said. Now he was really suspicious. Geoff never tried to make dumb small talk like that unless he was trying to hide something. It didn’t matter though, the challenge was going to start any moment now, and he wanted to see Courtney potentially lose it on Sadie. “Hey, man. I’m kind of in a hurry, so if you want to talk, you gotta come with me.”

Geoff, however, made no motion to move. Duncan just shrugged and continued on his way. He didn’t get very far before he was stopped again, this time by Geoff grabbing his arm, “hey, man, what gives? I wanna see Court try to trust Sadie. It’s gonna be hilarious.”

“Bunny got eaten by a snake!” Geoff exclaimed, completing ignoring everything Duncan just said, “then that snake got picked up by an eagle, and then that eagle got eaten by a shark!”

Duncan blinked as he tried to comprehend what Geoff just said. Looked like he wasn’t going to make it to that challenge, after all. “How?”

“Well, you see, this was what happened,” Geoff started before launching into the story of how Bunny met his unfortunate end. The two walked back to the cabin as they talked.

Back at the challenge, everyone was finding out that, in fact, Sadie was not a good shot. Sure, every apple she threw hit Courtney, but none actually made it to the arrow. Instead, Courtney was hit multiple times in the stomach, legs, arms, and head. She could hear her teammates yelling at Sadie to aim higher, more to the left, but she couldn’t focus on it. With each apple that hit her, it became harder to think, and her vision was becoming fuzzier. She was aware that at some point Leshawna actually managed to complete their task, but it seemed Sadie was not aware of that. No, she kept throwing apples, not listening to her teammates or Chris when they told her to cut it out.

Finally, it came to a head. With one final apple lobbed straight at Courtney’s head, she was knocked unconscious. As she fell, she mumbled, “you’re going down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmmmm. Ending on a cliffhanger. I wonder what's going to happen??? As always, drop a kudos or a comment if you feel compelled to do so. I would really appreciate it.


	6. Concussions Suck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'll remember, Courtney was just knocked out by Sadie in the William Tell Challenge. Now, for the rest of Who Can You Trust?

Finally, it came to a head. With one final apple lobbed straight at Courtney’s head, she was knocked unconscious. As she fell, she mumbled, “you’re going down.”

DJ was the first one to react, running over to Courtney and picking her up, and Bridgette quickly joined him. Sadie was still lobbing apples, blissfully unaware of what she just caused. Then, Chris ran over to Sadie and grabbed her by the shoulders, “Sadie! It’s over, man! Let it go!” This caused her to lift her blindfold and see what happened, “oopsies, sorry!” she apologized, but Courtney couldn’t hear her.

Chris shook his head before addressing the group, “safe to say the Screaming Gopher’s won that one! Two points gophers, one point bass! For our next challenge I’m going to need Heather, Lindsay, Brigette and Harold. It starts in an hour over there,” he pointed to a newly built pool of water and a trapeze, “don’t be late!” Then he walked over to Bridgette and DJ, “hey man, you want to get her to the medical tent? Have Chef check her out?”

“Yeah,” DJ nodded, “she might have a concussion. Coming, Bridge?” Bridgette nodded, and the three of them were off. As they left, Chris shouted after them, “remember Bridgette: challenge, an hour. Don’t be late.”

Bridgette and DJ slowly walked to the medical tent, neither wanting to move too fast and cause Courtney any more harm. The chatted as they walked, “well, this sucks,” Bridgette stated, “Court said she was scared she was going to kill Sadie, but she should have been concerned for the opposite.”

DJ nodded, “yeah, I know.”

“Do you think she’ll be okay?” Bridgette asked, her voice overflowing with concern.

“Yeah, probably,” DJ said, “she probably has a concussion which sucks but isn’t usually all that bad. As long as she hasn’t had another one recently, she should be good.”

Bridgette smiled, “good!” Then she remembered something, “no, wait. Not good. She had one earlier in the summer, remember? At the talent competition. It was my fault, I dropped that stage light on her giving her a concussion and breaking her violin. I felt really bad about it, and I was scared she was never going to talk to me again. We weren’t that good of friends yet.”

“Cool,” DJ deadpanned. So much had happened during the talent contest that he had forgotten that particular detail, but, now that Bridgette said it, he distinctively remembered a bandage around Courtney’s head the following days. It wasn’t too bad then, but second concussions were always worse. “We’ll just see what Chef says. Hopefully it’ll be fine.”

They finally reached the medical tent, and DJ gently placed Courtney on an empty bed. Bridgette sat on the end of it. Chef was currently busy with Trent, but, once he saw there was a new hurt camper he walked over to them, “what happened to miss bossy?”

DJ wasted no time, “Sadie hit her with a whole bunch of apples. Knocked her out. We think she might have a concussion, she hit her head. She had one about three weeks ago.”

“Okay, let me know when she wakes up,” Chef grumbled before going back to Trent.

As they waited, they settled into a quiet conversation. They had no way of knowing when she would actually wake up, and they didn’t want her to be alone when it happened.

“Is it bad that she hasn’t woken up yet? It’s been like twenty minutes.” Bridgette asked. She had positioned herself to where she way lying next to Courtney, and she was holding one of her hands. DJ was sitting on the next bed over.

“I mean, it’s not good,” DJ said, “but it’s definitely not bad either. Not yet, anyways. But the longer it takes…”

Bridgette let out a soft whine and closed her eyes. There had to be some way to rationalize why she wasn’t waking up, “maybe she just needed to catch up on sleep? With all the Duncan stuff she hasn’t slept much at all the past three days. Maybe, maybe it’s a good thing.” Her voice was full of hope mixed with desperation.

DJ shook his head, “probably not, Bridge. The longer she’s out, the more of a chance there’s something seriously wrong. Like internal bleeding or something.” The surfer’s eyes brimmed with tears, and she lifted her free hand to wipe them away. DJ sighed, “Bridge, no. We don’t know that yet. Chances are it’s not that serious. Nines times out of ten it’s not that serious. I promise.”

“You can’t promise!” Bridgette cried, “and how do you know so much about concussions anyway? Are you secretly a doctor?”

DJ let out a hollow laugh, “no, I’m not a doctor. I’ve just seen it a lot on the football field. I’ve been pretty lucky, but some of my teammates haven’t. Concussions are an occupational hazard. And I promise, out of all the concussions I’ve seen, I can count on one hand the times it’s actually been really bad, and, even then, all they needed was some time. She’ll be fine.”

“Okay,” Bridgette quietly said. It was easier for to believe things were going to be okay than not okay, and she didn’t want to think about any of the possible negative outcomes. Instead, she just offered, “so, should one of us maybe go find Duncan? He’d want to know, right?”

“Eh, I’d wait,” DJ answered, having already thought this over, “wait until she actually wakes up and until Chef actually checks her out. Don’t want to prematurely worry him. Like I said, she’s probably fine.”

As if those were the magic words, Courtney slowly began regaining consciousness. She didn’t know where she was, but her entire body hurt. Somebody was lying in a bed with her, holding her hand. She slowly opened her eyes and looked over to see Bridgette next to her and DJ sitting on another bed. There were medical supplies everywhere. Was she in the medical tent?

“Ugh, Bridge, what happened?” Courtney asked as she shifted herself into a sitting position, “why am I here?”

Bridgette quickly turned her head, and the tears that threated to spill earlier finally let loose, “Court! You’re okay!” She let go of the CIT’s hand and pulled her into a tight hug, “oh, I was so scared you weren’t going to be okay. You’re my best friend, and I don’t know what I would have done if you had to leave. Oh, Court, you’re okay.”

Courtney was taken aback by Bridgette’s honest emotions, and she could feel her eyes start watering, too. She quickly blinked back the tears, they could do this later, and she still didn’t know what happened, “Bridgette, as touched as I am by all this I still don’t know what happened. The last thing I remember was Chris explaining the challenge. Did we get the point?”

“You got pelted with apples,” DJ answered when it was obvious Bridgette was too emotional to do so, “Sadie knocked you out. It was brutal. And no, we didn’t get the point, sorry. We think you have a concussion, and you’ve been out for about thirty minutes or so. I’m going to get Chef to check you out, okay?”

Courtney nodded as DJ went to go get Chef. She was still in Bridgette’s death grip, and she did her best to escape it, “Bridgette, can you please let go of me? Your grip is a little, uhm, tight, and my body already really hurts.”

Bridgette quickly released Courtney and shot off the bed, “oh, Court, yes. I’m sorry. I was just so worried. But yes, yes, you need space. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not that big of a deal,” Courtney assured, reaching a hand to grab one of the surfer’s, “I just needed some room to breathe. It was nice, if not a little suffocating. It’s nice to know someone cares that much.”

“Oh, and I care so much!” Bridgette said, squeezing Courtney’s hand, “but really, how are you feeling?”

Courtney shrugged, then winced, “my entire body hurts. I feel like I got hit by a car. My head is killing me, and I’m so tired. Sadie did this to me?”

“Oh, Court, I’m sorry,” Bridgette sympathized, “and yeah, she did. It was horrifying, she wouldn’t stop throwing apples at you, even after we lost. We all kept yelling at her to stop, but she didn’t until after you were already on the ground.”

“Can we vote her out tonight?” Courtney asked, causing the surfer to laugh, “we might still win, Court. But, yes, if we lose, we can definitely vote Sadie out. She was reckless today. She hurt my friend.”

Then, DJ finally returned with Chef, “hey, surfs-up, Chris wants me to remind you that your challenge starts in ten minutes. Go,” Chef ordered.

Bridgette nodded, she had understandably lost track of time while in the medical tent. She gave Courtney a quick hug, “I have to do the next challenge. Wish me luck?” After the CIT obliged, the surfer turned to DJ, “you coming with me or are you going to stay?”

“I’ll stay. Someone should probably wait with her,” DJ answered.

Chef, however, had a different opinion, “yes, you too. I don’t need you getting in the way. Go, get out.”

DJ quickly accepted defeat. He didn’t want to get in the way, and Chef was scary. There was no need to try to argue with him. The two teens waved goodbye to Courtney and left the medical tent. They walked to the challenge area and chatted about nothing.

Meanwhile, in the guys’ cabin, Duncan and Geoff were preparing to go back to the challenge area. Not long after Geoff finished his tale, Harold made a quick stop at the cabin. While he didn’t stay long, he did let them know that they lost the challenge and that him and Bridgette would be doing the next part in fifty minutes. He didn’t, however, tell them about Courtney, as he did not think it was important or know about Duncan’s renewed and increased attachment to her.

“Ready to go, dude?” Geoff asked once it came down to fifteen minutes until the challenge, “it’s time.”

Duncan shrugged, “I guess,” he said as he glared at the party boy. Truthfully, he was annoyed that Geoff had made him miss Courtney’s challenge for the bunny thing, and he was annoyed that Bridgette and Geoff thought it should fall on her. It wasn’t her fault the blonds managed to get the pet killed, and she had more important things to worry about.

“Great!” Geoff said, choosing to ignore his friend’s glare and bitter tone of voice. He walked over to the cabin door, opened it, and waited for Duncan to join him. Once he did, Geoff ushered him out with a smile. The two walked to the challenge area in silence, Geoff knowing that the delinquent wasn’t the happiest with him at the moment. That didn’t matter, though. He was about to watch Bridgette kill it in another challenge, and he couldn’t wait.

When they made it to the trapeze and pool, they saw that all of the Screaming Gophers, excluding Trent, were there, but Harold and Sadie were the only Killer Bass present. Harold was standing with Chris, Lindsay, and Heather, and Sadie was standing off to the side on her own. Duncan and Geoff did not go stand with her, something she seemed grateful for if her brief look of panic and then relief was any indication.

Chris looked kept looking down at his watch and back towards the main camp. Even though there was still five minutes until the challenge started, he didn’t like that Bridgette wasn’t there yet. Thankfully, he only had to wait a minute more for Bridgette and DJ to rush to the challenge area.

“I’m here! I’m here!” Bridgette breathlessly exclaimed as she took her spot next to Harold, “I’m not late am I?”

“No, you’re not, which is very good for you,” Chris said before jumping into the challenge explanation.

As Chris said what he needed to, DJ joined Duncan and Geoff. Right away, Duncan noticed Geoff tense up and the sympathetic smile DJ was sending his way. He knew the cause of Geoff’s reaction, but he didn’t know what was up with DJ. However, before he could ask, Geoff let the pressure get to him, “Bunny’s gone, dude!” That was all it took for DJ to quickly shift his focus to Geoff, allowing Duncan to slip away and take care of it before it all undoubtably fell back on Courtney.

After grabbing a carrot to lure a new, unsuspecting rabbit, Duncan began his search. He knew it wouldn’t be hard to find a bunny, as they were all over the place, but he was a little worried about actually catching it. Rabbit were sneaky animals. It took a few minutes, but he found one that was enticed by the carrot. Duncan began taunting the animal with it, slowly backing away from it until it came to him fully, then he snatched it up and stuck it in his pocket. He gave himself a victory smile as he headed back to the cabin and hopefully DJ.

Unknowingly to him, Duncan’s search had brought him by the medical tent, causing him to be caught by Courtney. She didn’t have a chance to do anything about it then because she was still being checked out by Chef, but she was hoping she could catch him on his way back. She allowed herself the feeling of wanting to be comforted by him. It had been a rough day so far, and she didn’t feel good at all. Thankfully, he entered her field of vision again.

“Duncan!” Courtney called out, hoping he could hear her. He did, but, judging by the way he was looking around, he didn’t know where the source came from. “Duncan!” she called again, this time a little louder. Finally, he saw her. His eyes filled with worry at the sight of her sitting there, leaving Courtney to wonder how bad she actually looked, and he rushed into the medical tent.

“Court, what, are you okay?” Duncan asked once he reached her, “what happened? Why isn’t anyone here? Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

Courtney chose to ignore all of his questions as she scooted over and patted the spot next to her. When Duncan sat she leaned into him, and he wrapped an arm around her. “Why didn’t you come see me do the challenge?”

“Geoff,” Duncan bitterly said. He had been agitated when he initially missed Courtney’s challenge, but, now that she was in the medical tent, his agitation was full blown anger. Courtney looked at him curiously, and his features softened, “but that doesn’t matter. What happened? Why are you here? I’m sorry, but you don’t look good at all. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay,” Courtney sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder, “I have a concussion, my head is killing me, I feel like I got hit by a moving vehicle, and I’m so tired but not allowed to sleep. But I’m okay.”

Duncan looked down at her, a foreign expression on his face, “shit, Court. How did that happen?”

“Sadie,” she answered, her voice full of disdain, “she said she was a good shot, and I believed her. Like an idiot. Bridgette said we could vote her out if we lose.”

“Hell yeah we’re going to vote her out,” Duncan said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, “babe, I’m so sorry this happened to you. I’m sorry I wasn’t there.”

Courtney lifted her head up so that she could look at him, “it’s okay. It’s not your fault. Bridgette and DJ were here. But, now that you are, can you, uhm, can you stay? Please.” Duncan nodded. Of course he was going to stay. He leaned over to kiss her forehead, causing her to look at him with wide eyes. She took a deep breath before returning her head to his shoulder, “I’m so happy you’re here,” she whispered.

Duncan tightened his grip around her and pulled her closer, “I’m not. I don’t want you to be here at all. Freakin’ Sadie.”

“Freakin’ Sadie,” Courtney agreed, dropping her head down to his chest. She draped an arm across his waist and snuggled in as deep as she could. While Duncan enjoyed the closeness, he knew it wasn’t good.

“Court, babe, you can’t sleep,” Duncan reminded her, gently shaking her shoulder with his free hand. That seemed to do the trick as she slowly lifted her head and sat up, “sorry, I know. I’m just so tired.”

“Yeah, I know. Let’s find something to talk about, okay?” Duncan suggested. At that moment Heather entered the medical tent covered in jelly fish. “That’s something right there,” he joked, “think we got that point?”

Courtney shrugged, “maybe. I know I should want us to, but I really hope we didn’t. Losing wouldn’t be terrible.”

“Yeah?” Duncan asked, trying to bite down a smile, “you wanna get rid of Sadie that bad, huh?”

“What I want, Duncan, is to take a nap,” Courtney said, a bit of a whine in her voice, “and I can’t do that because of her. I’d say that warrants at least a little ill-will.”

Duncan laughed and removed his arm from around her, causing Courtney to let out a long whine. This only made him laugh harder before grabbing her by the waist and pulling her into his lap. She sat perpendicular to him, and he wrapped both of his arms around her and clasped his hands together at her waist, “is this okay?”

Courtney nodded and dropped her head to his shoulder again. She was about to move on when a rabbit poked its head out of Duncan’s pocket. She lifted her head and asked, “why is there a rabbit in your pocket?”

“Oh, it’s for DJ. You probably know that Bunny number one was eaten by a snake, then shark by now. I know the blonds wanted you to take care of it for them, so, uh, I thought I would instead. Didn’t want you to have to worry about it,” Duncan was careful not to look at her, not wanting her to read too much into this. Sure, he liked her, and she was his girl or something, but that didn’t mean he did nice things for other people.

“Really?” Courtney asked, “Duncan, that’s, it’s almost as if you’re nice,” she joked. But, the more she thought about it, the more she realized he was. Her eyes widened, “you are nice! Duncan!”

Duncan shook his head, “don’t say that, Court, I’m not nice, and you know it.”

“You’re being nice right now,” Courtney argued as she wrapped her arms around his neck and made him look at her, “you found a new bunny for DJ for me, and you’re making sure I’m alright, and you’ve been good to me all day. I think that constitutes as nice.”

“Court, shut up,” Duncan ordered, but she just smiled tauntingly at him, “I’m serious, cut it out.”

“I’ll cut it out when you stop being such a good guy,” she playfully said, “besides, it’s not a bad thing. I like it when you’re nice.”

The “to me” went unspoken, and, all of a sudden, being nice didn’t seem like that bad of a thing. Duncan rolled his eyes, but it wasn’t malicious, “yeah, well, maybe I’m only nice to you. But don’t tell anyone, okay.”

Courtney hummed in agreement, “of course I’m not going to tell anyone. It’s like our secret.”

“Yes, and I’d like to keep it that way,” Duncan reiterated; he really did not want this getting out.

“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Courtney said, “no one can know that big, bad Duncan has a heart. But you do know that at least Bridgette and Geoff are going to know you found a new bunny for DJ, right?”

Neither of them saw Bridgette enter the medical tent, too wrapped up in each other. She sat down at the end of the bed and asked, “you found a new bunny for DJ?”

They both looked at Bridgette in alarm. Courtney’s arms fell to her side, and she shifted in Duncan’s lap until her back was to his chest and she faced Bridgette. Duncan kept his arms around her, his hands now falling in her lap. Bridgette didn’t try to hide her smile. She was so glad the two of them worked through their problems and decided to give things a go. Plus, Duncan had found a new bunny!

“Uh, how much of that did you hear, Malibu?” Duncan nervously asked, “because, uh, it’s not what you think. Dumb rabbit wouldn’t leave me alone, and I knew DJ needed a new one. Not a big deal, it just happened.”

“Sure, whatever,” Bridgette said, waving a hand a him, “I don’t really care how you found it, but I’m so glad you did! DJ and Geoff are paired for the next challenge, and it’s not good. DJ is really upset about Bunny being gone, and they have to compete in like 45 minutes. He doesn’t trust Geoff at all! You need to get that bunny to him now or else we’re going to lose.”

“No way in Hell I’m going anywhere,” Duncan expression was indignant, “I’m not leaving Courtney here,” he tightened his grip around her, “to take care of a problem you and Geoff caused. If you want DJ to get that rabbit before the challenge starts, you’re the one who’s going to have to take it to him.”

Bridgette shrugged. She wasn’t even offended by his admittedly insulting tone. Duncan wanted to stay with Courtney, and she couldn’t fault him for that. “Sure, I’ll take it to him later. There’s still like 45 minutes until the challenge after all, it can wait.” Duncan’s jaw dropped slightly from behind Courtney. Bridgette had been so quick to try to kick him out, but now, when it was her job to present DJ with Bunny number two, there was time to spare. When Bridgette saw this she only smiled apologetically.

“Anyway, moving on,” Bridgette scooted across the bed and grabbed Courtney’s hands, “how are you? Do you have a concussion?”

Courtney sighed, “yes. And I can’t sleep or else I could go into a coma or something,” she squeezed the surfer’s hands, “Bridgette, I’m so tired. I just want to take a nap. My head hurts and my body hurts and I want to take a nap.”

Bridgette frowned, “I’m sorry, Court. I wish there was something I could do to help you feel better.”

“Me too,” Courtney said, taking her hands out of Bridgette’s and picking up Duncan’s. She forced his hands apart and crawled the short distance to Bridgette. She pulled her friend into a hug, “thank you for coming back to check on me. I really appreciate it. Did you win your challenge?”

Bridgette nodded as she returned the hug, “yes. It’s 2-2 now, and there’s only one challenge left. That’s why it’s so important that we get DJ this bunny. They need that point so that we win and don’t have to vote someone out tonight. They’re against Gwen and Leshawna, so it could really go either way.”

Courtney sat on this for a moment. Winning was good, but there might be something even better. Bridgette wouldn’t like it. “What if, and hear me out on this, but what if we just see what happens? What if we don’t get DJ that rabbit? Would we lose for sure? Do we win for sure if we do? What if, Bridgette, what if we hold out. It might not even matter. It might not be terrible to lose tonight.”

Bridgette slightly pulled away from Courtney and gripped her shoulders, “are you implying we don’t do absolutely everything we can to ensure this win? Court. Who are you? Maybe you really are brain damaged because that’s, that’s insane and not like you at all. You thrive off winning.”

“That’s not what I’m saying at all,” Courtney said diplomatically, “and I’m not brain damaged. I’m just suggesting that Sadie, who is now a very real threat, could be an easy vote out tonight. I could sleep easy, or stay awake all night easy I guess, since I’m not allowed to sleep, knowing that a danger to our well-beings is gone.”

Though Bridgette was annoyed that Courtney was considering not giving their team every advantage they could, she had to admit that she had an alright reason for doing so. It wasn’t a great reason, but she didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. Bridgette herself, however, had also been the cause of several injuries, so it would be majorly hypocritical for her to let Courtney make this decision. And it would be cruel to DJ to extend his suffering any longer than necessary. Of course Bridgette was going to make sure DJ had the rabbit before the challenge started, and of course she was going to encourage them, but Courtney was right. Losing might not be the most terrible thing today.

“We’ll see what happens, Court,” Bridgette said, “for DJ’s sake we’re not going to hold out, but you’re right. We could still lose. You said it this morning, and you say it now. We’ll just have to see.”

Courtney nodded her head to the said, “fair enough. At this point I’m fine with whatever outcome. It will be a good day either way.”

Bridgette smiled at her friend and was about to respond to that when Heather, on her way out of the medical tent, stopped at Courtney’s bed. She stood at the end of it and sent the three Killer Bass a mocking smile. Courtney shook Bridgette’s hands off her shoulders, and the bass all stared blankly at her and waited.

“Hey, fishies,” Heather greeted them, “sucks about your concussion, Courtney. Hope your team doesn’t vote you out after we win. I like you.”

Courtney glared, “what are you doing here, Heather? Don’t you have your own team to terrorize?”

“Oh, but what’s the fun in that?” Heather asked, “I’d rather hang out with you guys. I would think you’d want that, Court. I’m so much more interesting than blonde one and juvie here.”

“Don’t call me Court,” the CIT spit, leaning towards Heather, “only my friends get to call me that. And I hope your team does vote you off for being such an atrocious human being after we win.”

Heather continued her mocking smile, now showing her teeth. She geared up to lob another insult when Bridgette spoke up, “let’s all just calm down.” She placed a hand on Courtney’s forearm. “We don’t want to do anything we might regret.” Courtney nodded and let out a long breath. “Great. Now Heather, as nice as this has been, we’d really appreciate it if you’d leave. I know Courtney already has a headache, and you wouldn’t want to contribute to it, would you?”

“Sure, blonde one, I’ll leave you losers here in a minute. There’s just one thing I’d like to say first,” Heather’s smile slid off her face and was replaced with her iciest glare. Bridgette shrunk back a little, but Courtney stood her ground. “I think it would benefit you to stay away from Lindsay. She’s mine.” She smiled again and waved her fingers, “toodles, fishies.”

With that, Heather left the medical tent. Once she was gone, Courtney let out an annoyed groan and fell onto her back. Her head landed next to where Duncan was sitting, and he placed his hand on the other side of her head and ran his fingers through her hair. “You okay, babe?” He asked.

Courtney groaned again, “no,” she said before flipping over to her side. She faced away from them. “Today’s the worst. We’re probably going to lose, I have a concussion, Bunny got eaten by a shark, Heather is Heather. I hate it.”

“I thought losing wouldn’t be that bad?” Duncan jokingly asked as he pulled his hand out from underneath her head and set it on top, “we could get rid of Sadie.”

“Shut up,” Courtney weakly ordered, “it would still be nice to win and stick it to Heather. God she thinks she’s so much better than us. It’s such bullshit. I hate today.”

“No you don’t,” Duncan slid his hand from her head to her shoulder, “today’s awesome, and you’re going to remember it for a long time. The day we finally got over ourselves and decided to actually give this thing a go. I’ll make sure you don’t even remember losing or Sadie or Heather.”

Courtney flipped over to her other side, barely giving Duncan enough time to remove his hand from her shoulder, and looked up at him, “you’re right, I’m sorry. I’m just tired and everything’s getting to me finally I think. Thanks for putting up with me.”

Duncan smiled warmly at her, “I’m not putting up with you, Court. I like you, remember?”

Bridgette chose this time to try to slide off the bed without either noticing her. She was pretty sure that the couple forgot she was even there, and this was obviously a private moment. However, when she scooted, the whole bed creaked, reminding Courtney and Duncan of her presence. Courtney quickly sat up, and Duncan closed his eyes and dragged a hand over his face.

“Oh my God, Bridgette, I’m so sorry,” Courtney apologized, “I forgot you were here, I’m so sorry. You should have said something. I’m sorry.”

Bridgette put up a hand, “it’s fine, Court. I was just leaving. I’ll just, uhm, take this bunny,” she grabbed the animal from Duncan’s pocket, “and be on my way. Feel better.”

“I’ll try,” Courtney said, “cheer the guys on well and come see me after, okay. I want to know if we’re actually voting Sadie off or not tonight.”

Bridgette smiled and nodded, “of course. See you in a bit.” Then, she left the medical tent.

Alone again, Courtney and Duncan went back to their previous conversation. Duncan lowered his body so that he was lying next to Courtney, facing her. He grabbed one of her hands and laced their fingers together. He did his best to make sure she didn’t fall asleep, which she really wanted to do. After ten minutes of this, Chef Hatchet interrupted them. He stood at the side of her bed and had Trent in a wheelchair. He still looked sickly.

“Miss bossy, get up, you’re fine. I’m taking guitar man to the challenge, and you’re good to go too,” Chef said.

Courtney sat up, Duncan mimicking her, and smoothed her hair down, “are you sure I’m fine? I have a concussion, and I could have brain damage or internal bleeding. It just might not be presenting itself yet. Something could happen.”

Chef rolled his eyes, and Duncan hid a smile behind his hand, “I said you were fine, bossy. If you feel worse than you do now in an hour come back, but you’re fine for now. Delinquent will take care of you.”

Duncan nodded and stood up, “come on, Princess,” he offered her a hand. She took it. “Let’s get out of here, okay?”

“Okay,” Courtney agreed, and the four left, Courtney and Duncan trailing behind Chef and Trent.

Once they were out of the medical tent, Duncan slowed to a stop, pulling Courtney with him, “do you want to watch the last challenge, or do you want to go back to the cabin? I doesn’t matter to me.”

Courtney shrugged. She wanted to go back to the cabin, but that was so she could take a nap, and she knew she couldn’t sleep yet. Her head was pounding, and it hurt to walk. She really didn’t want to walk across camp, but she knew it would probably be better for her. She’d been laying down all afternoon and needed to do something. “The challenge, I guess.”

“You sure, Court?” Duncan asked, “because I really don’t mind if you want to go back to the cabin.”

Courtney nodded, “I’m sure. I think maybe a walk could do me good right now. Mostly I want to take a nap so, since I can’t do that, going to the cabin is probably a bad idea.”

Duncan laughed and started walking again, pulling Courtney with him, “yeah, probably. Don’t want you to slip into a coma or anything.”

The couple walked the rest of the way to the challenge. When they got there, they stopped next to Bridgette, who still had Bunny. While they were already holding hands, Courtney used her other to sandwich his hand between hers and stood slightly behind his arm. In response, Duncan carefully lifted that arm over her head and around her shoulders, his hand still in both of hers. In the ten minutes it took for the challenge to start, Courtney explained that Chef decided that she was fine enough to leave the medical tent, and Bridgette explained that she still had Bunny because DJ and Geoff were already at the top of the mountain when she arrived. Then, the race was on.

Both teams watched anxiously. Neither duo was giving their best work. Gwen was nervous, and Leshawna wasn’t listening. They even disappeared for a moment. DJ was still hurt over losing Bunny, and nothing Geoff did could get him to focus on the challenge. Finally, Bridgette decided that enough was enough. She called out, “DJ,” hoping to get his attention. Whether she had it or not, she continued, “LOOK, I FOUND BUNNY!” She saw Geoff point and yell something, and suddenly they were doing well.

That was also when Gwen and Leshawna showed back up and started getting into the groove of the challenge. The pairs worked hard to navigate the slop, and neither had the clear upper hand. It coming to an end, and, due to an inopportunely placed explosive, the Screaming Gophers were the clear front runners. However, DJ and Geoff landed right in front of the finish line and had enough momentum to cross it first. It seemed the Killer Bass had won their fourth straight challenge.

Each member of the Killer Bass celebrated their apparent victory in a different way. Harold and Sadie ran to their heroes, who at that point was just Geoff, and expressed their gratitude. Bridgette waited and had Bunny displayed in her hands. Soon enough, DJ made his way over and claimed his pet. Courtney’s, whose headache had only gotten worse, took a few steps away from the chaos, Duncan following after her.

“Thanks for finding Bunny, Bridge,” DJ tearfully thanked. He was cradling the animal in his arms.

Bridgette smiled, “no problem, but it wasn’t me. Duncan found him actually.”

“Really? Okay. I’ll need to thank him.” DJ looked around for the delinquent. He found him a bit away, rubbing Courtney’s arms and whispering something in her ear. She didn’t look good. “Ah, I’ll do it later.”

Bridgette was about to respond when Chris began his closing remarks, “and the bass are the winners of the toboggan race!” They cheered even more, but their host wasn’t done, “unfortunately, I said that these were blind challenges. By taking the blindfold off for a moment you broke the number one rule, which makes the gophers today’s big winner!”

It took a moment for the campers to register what Chris had said. It was silent before the Screaming Gophers broke out into loud cheers. The Killer Bass just looked around at each other in shock. One minute they had the win, and the next it was gone. DJ was especially devastated, as it was his mistake that cost them the challenge. Chris dismissed the campers for the day, or at least until the marshmallow ceremony.

“So, pretty easy choice tonight?” Bridgette asked as she approached Courtney and Duncan by the tree line. DJ and Geoff were a few steps behind her.

Courtney nodded, wiggling out of Duncan’s grasp and taking a spot next to Bridgette, “yes. It’s Sadie, no question.”

Bridgette grabbed Courtney’s hand and squeezed, “You will hear no question from me on that, that’s for sure. I already told you we could, and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who made that promise. Looks like you’ll be getting your vengeance tonight.”

“Good, so we’re all agreed?” Courtney asked her alliance mates. They all nodded, so Courtney plastered on a fake smile and tightened her grip on Bridgette’s hand, “Awesome. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’re going to find me some ibuprofen and find out when I can actually take a nap.” Then, she pulled the surfer away, leaving the guys behind.

“You okay, Court?” Bridgette whispered as they made their exit.

Courtney shook her head, that fake smile still on her face, “I feel like my head is about to explode, and, if I don’t get relief soon, I think I’m actually going to kill someone. So no, Bridgette, I’m not okay.”

The rest of the afternoon passed without incident, but it came close a few times. Chef did not give Courtney permission to sleep until she went to sleep for the night, as in after the marshmallow ceremony. The marshmallow ceremony that wasn’t until 8:00, a whole five and a half hours after the end of the challenge. It was a long, miserable afternoon for the CIT. Several times there was an imminent meltdown over generally unimportant things, making it a long, miserable afternoon for Bridgette, who tasked herself with making sure everyone got to the end of the day in one piece.

Finally, it came time for the marshmallow ceremony. The Killer Bass Five all cast their votes for Sadie, as did Harold, and Sadie sent a spare vote Harold’s way. She hoped that the clear unit would take pity on her and go for Harold instead, but it wasn’t looking good. She knew she messed up, that she gave the wrong team member a concussion. Courtney’s glares had a way of making her feel empty, cold. It had to be her.

“Who wants a treat?” Chris asked with a knowing smirk, “a tasty goodie that represents exemption, security, piece of mind.” This was his favorite part. He loved goading the already exhausted and forlorn campers and dragging it out as long as he could. It broke up the monotony of the same thing every three nights. He never knew how the campers were going to respond, and he always wanted to get a unique reaction.

Tonight was his lucky night. From her spot in the front row, Courtney sighed, “just get on with it.”

Chris had expected that. She got poor sleep the night before, and a concussion left her weak. He knew all she wanted was to finally get to bed, and, if he didn’t like her so much, he could make this take an hour if he wanted. But he did like her, and she had been a trooper, so he just smiled and sped through the next part, “and if you don’t get a marshmallow, you have to walk the dock of shame, and you can never come ba-ack! Ever!”

He returned to his makeshift podium and started awarding the lucky campers, “let’s see, one for Duncan, one for Bridgette, one for Courtney!” Chris saw that the aforementioned campers were making no moves to collect their marshmallows, so he just threw them. “DJ, Geoff, well done my brothers,” He threw those, too. Now for the best part. Booting someone off, “looks like we only have one left.”

Sadie looked nervous. Her smile was forced, and her hands were shaking. Harold looked confused. He was the only one, besides Bridgette, who didn’t contribute to the Killer Bass losing a point. Chris smiled, “Sadie and Harold, the final marshmallow,” he paused for dramatic affect. Courtney leaned over and locked eyes with Sadie, and if looks could kill. Sadie was visibly squirming, and it seemed Harold could feel the residual hatred because his demeanor abruptly changed. Oh, Chris was enjoying this.

“Come on already,” Courtney complained, her mouth full of marshmallow. Chris just smiled tauntingly at her, but he knew he needed to finish this up. He could see both Bridgette and Duncan ready to jump to her defense from their spots in the back row, and he really didn’t want a meltdown from a noneliminated camper.

“Don’t rush me!” Chris chastised, “the audience eats up this kind of dramatic conclusion!” Courtney let out a long, annoyed, tired sigh as the host picked up the final marshmallow and geared up to send it to the final safe camper. “Harold,” he announced.

It took Sadie a moment to respond. Then, when she did, “you know what?” she stood up, “that’s fine with me you, you,” she threw her arms up as she carefully thought over her next words. All she came up with was, “marshmallow eating freaks!” Then she ran off and burst into tears. The remaining Killer Bass all exchanged looks of discomfort mixed with mild irritation. Chris smiled to himself before leaving the scene. Ah, the joys of elimination.

Courtney was the first one up. It had been a long day, and she was more than ready for bed. She didn’t bother with farewells, she just left. Bridgette got up, ready to make sure she was all okay, but Duncan sent her a look that clearly told her to back off and did it himself.

After catching up with Courtney, Duncan fell into pace with her. She was walking briskly towards the cabin, and he didn’t want to slow her down by trying to initiate any kind of physical contact. He hoped that just being there would be enough. She didn’t say anything, but she gave him a small smile. When they got to the cabin, Courtney stopped before the steps and grabbed Duncan’s wrist so that he would stop too.

Duncan turned to face her, and Courtney latched onto him. She wrapped her arms around his middle and pressed her cheek to his shoulder. If he was surprised by this, he didn’t let it show. He only returned the hug, his hands rubbing her upper back.

“Thank you, Duncan,” Courtney whispered, “thank you for today, for being here. I know that I haven’t been the easiest person to be around. Just, thank you. I’m really glad we worked things out. I’m really glad we’re giving this a chance.”

“It was no problem, Court,” Duncan pressed her closer. Her arms readjusted, and she let out a contented sigh. He didn’t think they’d make it to this point, not after the last three days, but here they were. Nothing had ever felt more right to him. “and you know what, Princess? I’m really glad we worked things out, too. This is going to be good, I promise.”

Courtney lifted her head off his shoulder and smiled at him, “I know it is. Once again, thank you. I’m going to bed now, but I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Duncan.”

“Goodnight, Court,” Duncan laughed, “I know you’re happy to finally be able to get some sleep. Make it count.”

Courtney nodded, “goodnight,” she said again as she slowly pulled away from him. She gave him one last smile before walking up the steps and disappearing into the cabin. He watched her go. Both were hoping she could finally get the rest she had been craving all day. It was still early, around 8:30, so Duncan took a seat on the steps and waited for his teammates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's Who Can You Trust? I have the next chapter (Basic Straining) written, which will also be in two parts, and I am currently at the beginning of X-Treme Torture. Hopefully it shouldn't take so long to write or be as long. Next chapter (well the one after) is when the first elimination change happens. I wonder who it will be. As always, if you feel so inclined please leave a kudos or a comment. I appreciate any little bit.


	7. Something To Do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part one of Basic Straining! Hope you enjoy!

“Lindsay, it’s the principle of it. Heather has no right to tell you who you can and can’t hang out with,” Bridgette explained as she brushed her hair, “and she definitely has no right to tell us we can’t hang out with you.”

Lindsay nodded, “I know, but I don’t want to get voted out. I want to be your friend, but Heather doesn’t like that.” She smoothed down her hair before setting her bandana in place.

“Who gives a shit about what Heather likes?” Bridgette asked. This conversation had been going on for thirty minutes now. Lindsay had shyly walked into the bathroom, where Bridgette and Courtney had been getting ready, and announced that they couldn’t be friends anymore, that Heather didn’t want her hanging out with the other team. Needless to say, both bass girls had a problem with that, and they were trying their best to make Lindsay see why.

“I do. I mean, I don’t, but I don’t want her to vote me out, either. I want to win,” Lindsay sadly said, “I told you, she said she’d vote me out if I kept hanging out with you.”

Courtney shook her head. Normally, this wouldn’t matter to her, but she liked Lindsay enough to want to continue their friendship, and she definitely disliked Heather enough to want to go against her on this. It wasn’t cool three days ago when she warned Bridgette and Courtney to stay away, and it wasn’t cool now. “Okay, just one question, does Heather even have the votes to get you out? From what it seems, no one on your team even likes her. Even you, her closest ally.”

“No, no, no!” Lindsay exclaimed, furiously shaking her head, “I like Heather, I do. I just like you guys, too. I want to stay in this game. Heather’s been really good to me! I could have already been eliminated tons of times, and I’m still here! Like, maybe she’s not nice or a very good friend sometimes, but she’s always been trustworthy to me.”

Bridgette put down her hairbrush and walked the short distance to Lindsay. She placed a comforting hand on the other blonde’s shoulder, “I get it. She’s your friend. She’s your ally. You want to stay true to her, but you have to be able to do what you want. I don’t want to be mean, but she’s manipulating you here. I’m sure she’s kept you safe in the past, but I don’t think she has the votes to get you out now. And, even if she did, I don’t think she would want to. Linds, she needs you.”

“Yes, Lindsay, her threats are baseless,” Courtney hopped off the counter she was sitting on and walking over to the blondes, “you’re the only person on this island who likes her. She’s not getting rid of you. And unlike Bridgette, I have no problem getting mean, if you can even count what she said as mean. Heather’s a terrible human being, and I’ve told her this. She thinks the best way to get things in life is by stepping on other people. It isn’t, by the way. I don’t understand why you or anyone would align themselves with her.”

Lindsay placed a hand over her heart as she thought this over. They could be right, her teammates certainly didn’t seem to like Heather most of the time, especially Leshawna and Gwen. Heather and Leshawna always fought, and Heather always did things to hurt Gwen. Surely they wouldn’t vote with her. Trent probably wouldn’t either. He liked Gwen, and Heather was meanest to her. Maybe Owen would, but that was only one person. Maybe Heather’s threat wasn’t real after all!

“You think so?” Lindsay asked, hope in her eyes, “I can be your friend and still stay in the game?”

Brigette nodded, “I mean, I can’t promise they won’t vote you out, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be because you’re hanging out with the other team if they do. Heather will be mad, but you have to ask yourself: is it worth it? Do you want to be our friend?”

“Yes! I love hanging out with you two, you’re so much more fun than my team! Of course I want to be your friend!” Lindsay earnestly said, “I didn’t want to stop, but Heather told me I had to, or she would vote me out. If she’s not going to vote me out, then there’s no reason I can’t be your friend, right?

“Right!” Bridgette confirmed, “and when the merge comes, which will be soon, you’ll have two more people who want to keep you safe. You don’t need Heather. You need to do what makes you happy, Lindsay.”

Lindsay smiled and pulled Bridgette into a hug, “thank you, Bridge!” She turned her head to Courtney, “and Court! Thanks for not letting me friendship break up with you.”

Bridgette returned the hug, “Of course, Linds. There was no way we were going to let you not be our friend just because of Heather. That’s insane. And remember, you always have a place with us. If you ever need to get away from anything, we’re here. Or I’m here, anyway. I won’t make any promises for Courtney.”

“Wow, Bridgette, it’s like you think I’m a horrible person or something,” Courtney said as she rolled her eyes, “I will also be available if you need something, but I’m positive you’d rather go to Bridge. She’s had more friends than me, she knows what to do better than I do. Still, I’m available. Are you okay now, though?”

Lindsay nodded and released Bridgette, “yes. I’m ready to, uh, crush your team in the challenge today.” She was quiet for a moment, “oh, I didn’t like that. Good luck. I hope we win but good luck.”

Courtney had to stifle a laugh, “thanks, Lindsay, I guess.” She shook her head before saying, “anyway, there’s something I want to do before the challenge, so I’ll see you both later. Bye.”

“Bye, Court!” Bridgette sang. There was a mischievous gleam in her eye, and the CIT knew she was about to be teased, “you want to hang out with your boyfriend some before the challenge. I get it.”

Before Courtney had a chance to dispute Bridgette’s mostly correct claim, Lindsay gasped dramatically and threw herself at Courtney, clutching onto her upper arms, “you have a boyfriend, Court? Is it Duncan? I don’t know who else it would be. Ahh, that’s so exciting! I thought the two of you seemed closer than before during the last challenge.”

Courtney rolled her eyes at the pair and wiggled out of Lindsay’s grasp, “he’s not my boyfriend. But, yes, technically that is the person I’m going to go see now.” She waved at the blondes before leaving the bathroom.

Once she was outside, Courtney ran into Heather. What she wanted, she didn’t know, but it appeared she was about to find out. Heather gave Courtney a malicious smile and said, “is Lindsay still in there? You’re not trying to turn her against me are you? I told you, she’s mine. You two need to stay away from her.”

“Fuck off, Heather,” Courtney sighed, “Lindsay can do whatever she wants.” Then, without waiting for a reply, she walked the rest of the way to her cabin.

Just as Courtney was about to round the corner to the cabin, a pair of underwear covered in a mysterious brown substance came flying at her. She narrowly avoided being hit by the projectile and repressed a gag. She eyed it suspiciously before looking around for the source. Thankfully, whatever it was didn’t smell bad, and she could hear the distinct sound of Duncan and Geoff’s laughter. It was probably safe. She found a frustrated Harold standing halfway out the door with what looked like more of the same in his hands. Sure enough, Duncan and Geoff were there freely laughing at him.

Harold noticed Courtney, and the color drained from his face, “Courtney, no, it wasn’t me. I promise!”

Courtney sighed as she heard Duncan stop laughing and happily ask, “ _Princess_?” She walked around the mess, around the corner, and up the steps, “I know, Harold. Can you just go back in the cabin?” He nodded and closed the door. Then, Courtney noticed that Duncan’s pocket knife was currently sticking out of the cabin wall. She sighed again and stopped next to him.

“What are you doing?” Courtney asked, grabbing the knife out of the wall and sticking it in her pocket.

Duncan shrugged, “you said you’d be here like 25 minutes ago.”

While that wasn’t technically an answer to her question, Courtney knew what it meant. She had told him a time, and, when she was late, he got bored and tried to find anything to do to pass the time. Harold was the natural target. She didn’t love it when he and, to a lesser extent, Geoff picked on him, but she got it. It wasn’t worth getting angry over, especially when a challenge wasn’t even going on. Then it would had been a problem.

“Sorry, something came up. I’m here now, though,” Courtney grabbed one of his hands and laced their fingers together, “and there’s still some time before the challenge starts.”

 “Yeah,” Duncan said, answering her non-question. He said a quick goodbye to Geoff before pulling her away from the cabin, “but seriously, babe, where were you? I wanted to hang out with you.”

Courtney smiled at him, her heart fluttering. This thing was still relatively new, and, after three days of fighting, then finally getting together, then two days of nasty concussion side effects for Courtney, they wanted to spend as much time together as they could. “I was with Bridgette and Lindsay. There was a little problem we needed to take care of, but it’s all fixed now. I wanted to hang out with you, too.”

“It’s so weird that you two are friends with Lind–” Duncan started, but he was cut off by Chef’s voice over the loudspeaker, “ _Listen up, you little cockroaches, I want all campers to report to the dock of shame at 0900 hours_.”

Courtney and Duncan slowed, and she sent him a slightly confused look as she tried to piece that together, “is that 9:00? Duncan, what time is –” Then, she was also interrupted by the loudspeaker, “ _that means now soldiers, now_!”

Duncan groaned as the couple turned to head to the dock of shame. He meant it when he told her he wanted to hang out. What was even the point of trying things out between them if they didn’t get any quality time together? Hopefully the challenge would be something where the two of them could potentially do their own thing or at least let them be close to each other. Courtney squeezed his hand and stroked it with her thumb.

When they got to the dock of shame, they quickly noticed Chef’s army garb. Not many campers had arrived yet, and the ones that were there all looked uncomfortable. Chef took one look at their interlocked hands and blew his whistle, “there is no hand holding in war, soldiers. Release each other and stand in formation with everyone else.”

Courtney nodded and immediately dropped Duncan’s hand, “yes sir.” She walked over to DJ and stood by him.

“This is bullshit,” Duncan muttered under his breath before turning to join Courtney. Chef, however, heard him and blew his whistle again, “what was that, maggot?”

Duncan turned his head to face him. Chef didn’t look angry per say, but he didn’t look happy either. He turned his head back to Courtney, and her eyes were pleading with him to just be cool about this. He decided it would probably benefit him in this moment to listen to her. “Nothing,” he said as he looked back at Chef.

“That’s what I thought,” Chef grumbled, “now go join the others. I don’t want to hear anything else out of you.”

Duncan nodded before turning again. Once his back was to Chef, he rolled his eyes. He took a spot next to Courtney and waited for everyone else to show up.

Once all the campers were present, Chef began his spiel. An army themed challenge lead by him. This wasn’t going to be fun. He finished up the final rules before ordering everyone to the beach. When they got there, he explained the first portion of the challenge. They had to hold a canoe above their heads as long as they could as a team. There was no set time. It ended when the first person gave up, and they wouldn’t eat until that happened. After giving the teams a minute to strategize, Chef started the challenge.

Time passed slowly. Last the campers heard, the challenge had been going on for four hours already, making it well after when lunch usually was. No one showed any signs of quitting, but the added weight of Chef and Chris pushed several of the campers close to their breaking points.

“Are you still doing good?” Courtney asked DJ, who was holding up the front. She knew he had the worst of it, and she had wanted him in the middle, but his height would have made that uncomfortable for him.

DJ looked over his shoulder the best he could and noticed her arms were slightly trembling. He tried to readjust to pick up more of the weight, but it was ultimately useless. “I’m fine, it’s not too heavy for me. But how are you holding up?”

“I’m doing great,” Courtney lied, her arms still trembling above her head, “sturdy as a rock. I’m not going anywhere any time soon.”

“Yeah?” DJ laughed, “sorry, Court, but your arms look like they’re about to give. Sure you’re doing okay?”

Courtney nodded, causing DJ to raise his eyebrows at her. She sighed and shook her head, “it’s harder than I thought it was going to be. It’s not even that it’s heavy. It’s just having my arms raised for so long. But I’m fine. We’re all fine. I just have to hold out longer than the gophers’ weakest link. Hopefully it shouldn’t be too much longer.”

“Hopefully,” DJ agreed, “but you’re still doing great. Keep it up.”

With that small check in done, Courtney settled back into silence and tried to focus on the task on hand. She didn’t know how much longer she could do this, but she knew she was close to cracking. She needed adrenaline or something that would give her a much needed energy boost. She knew she the one who was having the most trouble with the challenge. Most of her attention was on DJ, who hadn’t wavered once since the challenge started, but, whenever she looked behind her, she saw that the rest of the Killer Bass were also doing much better than she was.

“Come on, Courtney,” she whispered to herself, “you can do this. Not much longer. All you have to do is beat Heather or Gwen or Leshawna. One of them will give in soon. But not you. You have this.” She was so focused on giving herself this pep talk that she failed to notice the presence behind her getting closer. Then, in the middle of an affirmation, a pair of hands covered her own and took the brunt of the canoe weight. She very visibly startled, and she felt Duncan’s hot breath on the back of her neck as he laughed.

“What are you doing?” Courtney hissed, barely having to turn her head before she was face to face with him.

Duncan lifted a shoulder in lieu of a shrug, and Courtney couldn’t help but be annoyed at his ability to move so freely during this challenge. It was a struggle for her just to stand still. “Just hanging out. What are you doing?”

Courtney glared at him, “running a marathon, what does it look like I’m doing? The challenge, which you’re also supposed to be doing. Why are you here?”

“Told you, just hanging out,” Duncan repeated as he brushed the back of her hand with his thumb, “and, Court, there’s no need for all this hostility. I haven’t done anything wrong. I’m still doing the challenge same as you, just in different place. A better place, even. Relax a bit.”

“Relax a bit?” Courtney asked, incredulous that Duncan would even suggest something so impossible, “relax a bit? I can’t relax a bit. We’re in the middle of a challenge. You’re here, and I don’t know why. I’m struggling with this more than any one else is. I can’t afford to relax a bit.”

Duncan sighed, still brushing the back of her hand, “I already told you why I’m here. I’m hanging out. But if you want it more specific than that, then I’m hanging out with the girl I like. You know, you? Thought it’d be a nice thing to do since we didn’t get to this morning.

“And I know you’re struggling, babe, I’ve been standing behind you all challenge. Your arms have been shaking on and off for the past hour and half. I wanted to do something to help, but I knew you wouldn’t just take it. You’re too proud for that. I also wanted to hang out with you, so I thought I’d just come be a distraction. Two birds, one stone. Your arms aren’t shaking anymore, by the way, so I’d say it’s working.”

As Duncan explained this, Courtney found herself doing what he suggested, relaxing a bit, but it wasn’t intentional. He wanted to hang out with her. He wanted to help her with the challenge. Her arms weren’t shaking anymore because of him. It was all so much, and her heart swelled with a feeling she couldn’t place. It felt good, though. “Duncan, that’s, you’re being sweet. Thank you.”

“Only for you, Princess,” Duncan whispered, pressing his body closer to hers so that her back against his chest, “and you’re welcome. Now, just focus on me, not anything else. You have this. I know you do.” Courtney smiled at him as she decided a distraction was way better than an energy boost.

As the challenge continued, nothing noteworthy happened. The Killer Bass had a slight edge over the Screaming Gophers, but it didn’t matter as long as everyone was still holding the canoe. No one wanted to be the one who gave up first. When it got to eight hours after the start of the challenge, the time when dinner usually was, the gophers decided to have a check-in meeting.

“How’s everyone doing?” Trent asked. He stood at the front of the canoe, just behind Owen, and had to turn to see everyone. “I think I’m doing okay, but it’s been real touch and go for a while. I’m fine now, but I don’t know for how much longer. Gwen, how are you?”

“My arms feel like they’re on fire, so I’d say pretty well,” Gwen deadpanned, “this has to be over soon, right?”

From behind her, Leshawna grimaced, “girl, I can only hope. Y’all know I wasn’t made for this kind of thing. But don’t worry, I’m not giving up, and you better not either. None of y’all. One of those bass has to crack soon.”

“Yes, that was my thinking,” Trent agreed, “the only thing I don’t know is which one. Courtney’s been having trouble this whole time, but she’s also Courtney. I wouldn’t count her out. Geoff has only recently started struggling, but he doesn’t look close to being done. Everyone else looks fine, especially DJ and Bridgette.” He shook his head, “oh well. Doesn’t matter,” he turned his head in front of him, “Owen, bud, how are you doing?”

“I’m hungry,” Owen said, turning his head to face his teammates, “do you think if I end this challenge now we get to eat? Not that I would,” he laughed nervously, “I’m just wondering.”

Trent shook his head, “we’re not going to find out. You’ve been doing great. I know you’ve had the most work out of all of us, and I know you can keep it up. Focus on something that isn’t food.”

“You say that, but I don’t think you understand how hard that is for me,” Owen said as he faced forward again.

“Awe, I know you can do it, big guy,” Trent encouraged before he turned his head behind him again and took a deep breath, “Heather, Lindsay, are you doing okay back there?”

“Uhm, well, I can’t feel my arms any–” Lindsay started, but Heather quickly interrupted her, “both of us are doing great. Much better than you four considering we’ve been carrying this entire challenge on our backs. Or, should I say, our amazingly deceptive cores.”

Trent bobbed his head awkwardly, as if he was unsure if that were the right move, “sounds good, Heather, but, uh, Lindsay, did you want to say something?”

Lindsay nodded, “yes, actually, I don’t know how –” she was interrupted by Heather again, “she didn’t. She’s doing great. Now stop wasting all your energy with this pointless check-in. Just nobody quit, and we won’t have any problems. Or, well, any more problems, anyway.”

No one responded to this, either not knowing how or not thinking she was worth it. It was the middle of a challenge, and they couldn’t afford a fight. The Screaming Gophers just settled into an uncomfortable silence and waited for this thing to be over. Then, after ten, long, excruciating hours, it finally was.

Earlier in the challenge, Lindsay tried telling her team she didn’t think she could do it for much longer, but Heather never let her get the words out. Maybe if she did, they would had been able to figure out a way to lessen her burden, but they never got the chance. Now, two hours later, they were about to pay for that mistake.

Lindsay dropped her arms, “guys, I can’t do this anymore,” she whined, taking off towards the dock of shame, “I have no more feeling in my arms.” Her teammates watched in confusion. She hadn’t made any mentions of struggling earlier.

Chef smiled widely, “looks like we’ve got ourselves a quitter!”

“Don’t do it, Lindsay!” Owen called after her, as if that would change the fact that she already let go of the canoe.

Lindsay ignored him. She crossed the dock and hit the wimp bell with her head. Then, she stood up straight and addressed her team, “I’m sorry. It was just too much. I’m sorry.”

As Chef dealt with Lindsay, the two teams dropped their canoes. The campers gathered closer, waiting for their next orders. Soon enough, Master Chief announced it was dinner time and sent everyone to the “mess hall.” Once there, he announced they would have ten minutes to eat before night training. Without placing any food out, he began walking away.

“Uhm, excuse me, Master Chief?” Gwen said, hoping to get his attention, “where’s the food?”

Chef gave her a cruel grin and gestured to the trashcans, “you’re looking at it.” He chuckled as the campers exchanged horrified glances. This couldn’t be happening.

Time seemed to stop for a full minute until Owen mustered up the courage to peer into one of the trashcans, “this is the left over garbage from this morning’s breakfast.”

“Darn right!” Chef exclaimed, “when you’re at war, you take what you can get!” It was happening. Trash for dinner. This apparently wasn’t a problem for Owen, who just shrugged before tentatively sticking his hand into the trash and pulling something out. He blew on it before throwing it in his mouth. The other campers watched in disgust mixed with resignation. If they wanted to eat, they would have to do the same. Then, Chris and Chef left for a real meal, only rubbing salt in the wound.

As some of the campers excepted their fate, there were a few who were having problems doing so. Courtney watched as the guys grabbed a handful of whatever and placed it on their trays. There was no way she was eating this. She grabbed Bridgette’s wrist, “please tell me you’re not actually considering eating this garbage.”

“I don’t want to,” Bridgette admitted, “but what else are we going to do? It’s our only option, Court.”

“Is it?” Courtney asked, an edge in her voice, “I’d rather starve than put any of that in my mouth. No one is going to pull up a file of me eating garbage. That’s, that’s life ruining. And Bridge, it’s trash. It’s all mixed together. There’s probably meat in there.”

Bridgette hadn’t considered that, but it made sense. There had been bacon at breakfast, and, at this point, it was probably inseparable from the Bridgette-friendly food. Yeah, it wasn’t happening, “fuck. You’re right. So I guess we’ll just go sit with the guys and wait for them to finish?”

“No,” Courtney said, shaking her head, “I mean you can, but I’m going to wait outside. I don’t want to be anywhere near that.”

“Courtney, come on,” Bridgette urged, “it’s really not that big of a deal. As long as you don’t have to eat it.”

Courtney sighed and shook her head again. It was totally a big deal; Bridgette just didn’t see that yet. As always, the CIT knew what to say to get her friend on her side. “Bridge, how attractive do you think you’ll find Geoff after watching him eat literal garbage? Probably not attractive at all.”

Bridgette had to laugh at the ridiculousness of her friend’s reasoning. It was so vain! But, as she pictured Geoff stuffing trash into his mouth, she realized that it was also completely valid. It turned her off just thinking about it, “you’re right. Let’s go outside,” she agreed.

Courtney smiled pridefully at her, “I knew you’d see it my way,” she gloated as she pulled the surfer out the door.

“It seems I always do,” Bridgette sighed.

Once they were outside, they found that they were the only two out there. It seemed that everyone else, even the others the knew weren’t eating, decided to stay in the dining hall. With the whole porch to themselves, Courtney took a seat in the middle of the stairs, Bridgette quickly joining her.

“So, that challenge, huh?” Courtney asked, just for something to talk about.

 “Oh, I know!” Bridgette said, answering the unspoken question, “it was so rough! My arms are so tired. But it looked like you were having fun during it. Pressed up against your boyfriend’s chest the entire time.”

Courtney grimaced, flicking the surfer in the thigh, “he’s not my boyfriend.” She shook her head before moving on, “my arms are tired, too. I’m really proud of you, you know. You were the second best out of all of us. You were practically carrying our team!”

Bridgette blushed at the compliment, “I was not. That was all Deej.”

The two continued discussing the previous challenge and the upcoming night training as they waited for the guys. It was unspoken, but they both knew they weren’t going to leave without them. If they did, they would more than likely be late. No one wanted that.

When it got down to three minutes before the start of night training, Courtney decided it was time to try to wrangle the boys, “we should go soon,” she said as she stood up, patting Bridgette’s thigh on the way, “I’m going to go get them. Be right back.”

Bridgette nodded, “alright. I’ll be here.” Then, Courtney entered the dining hall. A minute later, she exited again, this time with their entire team. The six of them headed to the beach for night training.

Night training, as it turned out, was dancing. Chef was on a platform and the campers were to copy his movements. The accompanying music had no words, it was only a synthesizer and bass. The dance moves were repetitive and boring the first time through. Chef had given them no hints to when this would be over, and no one knew if the same rule applied as the canoe challenge. That a quitter means everyone is done.

The dancing went on for four long, tedious hours. At most, all the campers had in their stomachs was breakfast from that morning and the trash they were given for dinner. It was almost midnight and exhaustion was setting in. There was no end in sight, but a few campers were willing to risk ridicule from Chef just for this to be over.

Duncan was one of these campers. This dancing was bullshit, the music was giving him a headache, and he was mind-numbingly bored. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see other campers struggling as well. This challenge had been the roughest so far, and it was time to put an end to the day. It didn’t matter if this meant he was out of the challenge. Duncan knew it wouldn’t get him eliminated. Not with four other teammates in his corner.

From his spot in the front corner, Duncan walked the short distance to the CD player before turning it off. He heard the rest of the campers gasp from behind him, but he only looked up at Chef, a proud smirk on his lips.

“Duncan, what are you doing?” Courtney whisper-yelled at him.

Without looking at her and addressing Chef, Duncan answered her question, “one of us drops out, we’re done for the day.” He crossed his arms over his chest and prepared for Chef’s wrath.

“We’re done when I say we’re done,” Chef yelled, “now drop and give me twenty.”

Duncan rolled his eyes but did as “Master Chief” ordered. If he had known the punishment was only push-ups, he would had turned off the music three hours ago.

As Duncan did his push-ups, Chef ordered the campers to meet at the dining hall at 12:30 before sending Lindsay to bed and ushering Gwen away. The other members of the Killer Bass five formed a semicircle as they waited for him, standing off to the side. Once he was done with his punishment, Duncan joined the group, squeezing in between Courtney and DJ.

Duncan braved a look at Courtney and could tell from her slightly exasperated and largely exhausted expression that she wasn’t happy with him. She glanced at him for a brief second, her eyes unreadable, before refocusing her attention to the conversation. Bridgette was currently bemoaning the fact that they had to do another challenge, something everyone was on the same page about. Then, Geoff changed the subject.

“Dunc, dude! That was so badass!” Geoff reached a hand across for a fist bump.

“Thanks, man,” Duncan said, meeting the fist bump, “had to be done. That dancing was fucking dumb.” Then, he took another look at Courtney. Her expression was the same as before, and he took this a sign she wasn’t too angry with him.

“Dude, it so was!” Geoff agreed, “what the fuck does dancing have to do with the military, anyway? You’re a real one for turning that music off. Don’t think I could have done it. Thanks!”

Duncan nodded, “no problem. Anything for the greater good, you know, just wished I would had done it earlier. I can’t believe I only got some lousy push-ups as a punishment. Totally worth it.”

“Was it, though?” DJ asked from the other side of him, “don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that we don’t have to dance anymore, but that really could have screwed you. Not _all_ of us are impressed as Geoff is. Just remember that.”

“Uh, really?” Geoff asked, not reading between the lines of what DJ was saying, “because you said how cool it was earlier. Were you just telling me what I wanted to hear? Because, dude, you don’t have to do that. I respect your opinion, man.”

Duncan had to laugh at Geoff’s tangent. DJ clearly wasn’t talking about himself when he made that statement. It seemed Bridgette also couldn’t hold in her laughter, because she was giggling as she patted Geoff’s chest and told him, “maybe don’t worry about it, babe.”

“But, but, I don’t want him to have to –” Geoff started, but Bridgette quickly placed a hand over his mouth, “come on, Geoff, let’s go to the dining hall,” she looked past Courtney and Duncan to DJ, “you too, Deej. Maybe you two can figure this thing out, since Geoff’s so worried about it.”

DJ caught on immediately, “yeah, Bridgette, I’m ready. Geoff, let’s go.” Then, before Geoff had a chance to process what was going on, the three left, Bridgette having to pull him.

Left alone, Duncan slipped his hand into Courtney’s, “are you mad?”

Courtney sighed and shook her head before looking at him, “I want to be, but I’m not. I’m too happy to not be hearing that damn music anymore to be mad. It was giving me a headache, so thank you I guess. Just try not to push it so much. I don’t want to find out what else you can get away with, and, more importantly, what you can’t.”

“That was part of my reasoning too. That music was awful,” Duncan squeezed her hand, “and I’ll try. I can’t promise much, but I’ll try.”

“That’s all I’m asking,” Courtney squeezed his hand back and gave him a small smile, “hopefully the next part of this challenge won’t be so boring. I know it’s been hard for you in that aspect. Even with the music thing, you’ve been handling it well.”

Duncan gave Courtney an astounded look, “how did you know that?” he asked, surprised she had hit it right on the nose.

Courtney let out a soft giggle and placed a hand on his check, “Duncan, you don’t do well when you’re forced to do one thing for longer than, say, half an hour. I’m not blind. It’s not exactly a breakthrough on my part, it’s just you. I pay attention to my team. I pay attention to you.”

“Shit, babe, you’re awesome,” Duncan dropped her hand and placed his on her shoulder blade, pulling her closer. He was shocked by how good it felt for her to say she paid attention to him. There was a warm feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it only got warmer as he thought about how well she knew him already. He didn’t know what to do with it, so he just shifted his arm until she was tucked under it and asked, “wanna go to the dining hall now? I don’t think you want to be late.”

Courtney nodded, reaching a hand up to grab his, “yes, please.”

The couple left the beach and headed towards the dining hall. Once they, and everyone else, got there, Master Chief explained the next part of the challenge. They had two hours to write a 300 word essay about how much they loved him, and they weren’t allowed to fall asleep at all. Considering it was already after midnight, this was going to be rough.

While the challenge was going on, nothing exciting happened. The campers weren’t allowed to do anything but write their essay or just sit and wait. It was another boring challenge, but it was even worse this time. At least with the night training, they had the music and dance moves to focus on. This was just nothing.

By the time the two hours were up, only two campers feel asleep: DJ and Trent. Chef sent them to bed before checking the finished essays to make sure they were up too par. Unsurprisingly, everyone’s essay was, as it wasn’t hard to write 300 words. Most of the essays were well thought out and contained intricate compliments, but there was one in particular that was lack luster.

“I love Master Chief Hatchet because he is very, very, very, very…” Chef read after picking up Duncan’s essay. He repeated the word “very” several more times before sending the punk a glare, “this is just one sentence with five pages of ‘very’ in between!”

Duncan smirked at his aggressor, “it’s 300 words exactly! You can count them if you want.”

Master Chief’s eyes narrowed even more, but he didn’t say anything. He just moved on to the gophers table. When he got to the last essay, Owen’s, he slipped in a puddle of the teen’s drool. He picked himself back up, and reprimanded Owen before sending everyone to bed. He looked at the ground as he walked away, allowing Duncan to easily step into his path.

He pulled out a handkerchief from who knows where, and offered it to Master Chief, “missed a spot, there, general.”

“Boy, do you wanna run fifty laps around this camp right now?” Chef growled as he leaned into Duncan’s face.

Before Duncan had the chance to get himself into any more trouble, a pair of hand gripped his shoulders, their nails digging into them. He suppressed a wince as he was forcibly pulled back. Just as quickly, the hands released him, and Courtney stepped in front of him. Duncan smiled to himself. This checked out.

“No thanks! He’s going straight to bed,” she turned to face him, “aren’t you?” She took a few steps forward, pushing him with her. “Duncan, you were so close,” she sighed, “‘five pages of very’ notwithstanding, you were almost there. You were doing so good.”

“I know, it just, I don’t know,” Duncan tried to explain, “I wasn’t thinking, but please, baby, give me a break here. I just sat still for two hours in silence while writing an essay about _Chef._ I needed to do something.”

Courtney sighed again and grabbed his hand, “did I say I was mad at you? Because I’m absolutely not. I’m just frustrated. It’s three AM, I can’t hold this against you.” She started walking towards the door. He walked with her. “Honestly, you did better than I expected you to. It’s late. We’re all tired. I just, Duncan. There has to be a better way. I wish there was something I could do to help.”

“You are helping,” Duncan earnestly said, “so much, baby. I just, I don’t know how to put it into words. It’s too late. Even if it wasn’t, I don’t know if I could. I just want to go to sleep. I’m exhausted. I know you’re exhausted. It’s such bullshit that we only get an hour and half for sleep. I plan on using all of it.”

Courtney nodded, silently agreeing. She was just as tired as he was, if not more. They walked in silence until they reached the halfway mark between the dining hall and the cabin. Then, the CIT broke it, “Duncan?” she asked, squeezing his hand and urging him to look at her, “I don’t want you to read too much into this or anything, but it might be in our best interest to have a sleepover tonight.”

Duncan smirked at her, “want me in bed already, Court? Why, we haven’t even kissed! I thought you wanted to take it slow.” His tone was light, and Courtney knew he wasn’t serious.

“Shut up,” Courtney laughed, playfully swatting him in the chest, “I still have to ask Bridgette, and I can still change my mind. It’s just easier that way. I can make sure you’re up, and therefore you can wake all the guys up. It’s purely strategical.”

“Whatever you have to tell yourself, babe. But yes, I’m more than down. Go ask Malibu. If she’s a friend she’ll be fine with it.”

Courtney smiled, hating how amused she was by all this. “Okay,” she said before dropping his hand and running to catch up with Bridgette. He watched her go, enjoying the view.

Unsurprisingly, Bridgette had no problem with Duncan spending the night. Courtney knew that if her and Geoff were a little more on the more than friends side of things that he would be over quite a bit. Also, this wouldn’t be Duncan’s first sleepover. He stayed over a couple of nights ago during the worst of Courtney’s concussion. It had been Bridgette’s idea that he stay, even.

Courtney relayed the good news, and the couple entered the cabin. They kept the lights off as Bridgette was already settled into bed, and they didn’t want to disturb her. Duncan sat down on Courtney’s bed and kicked his shoes off. Then, he pulled his shirt off and laid down. From what he could make out, Courtney was rummaging through her drawer, probably for her pajamas. After finding them, she padded over to her bed and sat down at the edge of it.

“Turn around so I can change,” Courtney whispered.

Duncan rolled his eyes, grateful she couldn’t see him, “Court, it’s pitch black in here. I can’t see anything.”

Despite this, he still turned to his other side. He felt Courtney get up from the bed, then, a minute later, sit back down. She laid down next to him, her back to his. Well, that wasn’t going to do. Duncan flipped back over and reached an arm around her stomach, pulling her back until she was pressed against him. She shifted until she was comfortable before looping her arm around his, “Goodnight, Duncan,” Courtney whispered.

“Night, Court,” Duncan returned, breathing in her admittedly not great scent. He wasn’t going to complain, though, because he knew he smelled worse. The day was long and exhausting and full of strenuous activity. It was too late, and they had to wake up too early for anyone to even consider taking a shower. He didn’t mind it, though, it was nice to just be sleeping next to her. He hoped this could become a more common occurrence, and that they wouldn’t have to come up with weak reasons for it to happen.

Courtney fell asleep first, the exhaustion setting in all at once. Duncan tightened his grip on her and let himself be lulled to sleep by the steady rhythm of her breathing.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

“ _Attention soldiers. We will be meeting at the beach at 0500 hours, fifteen minutes from now. Get your butts out of bed and get ready for the challenge_.”

Courtney woke slowly, trying to ignore all the sound around her. It was too early, and she hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep for any of this to be happening. The last few hours before bed were a blur, and she knew this whole day was going to be the same. She tried reaching a hand out to shut off her alarm clock, but something was keeping it in place. Before she could wonder what it was, that same thing spoke.

“Court?” Someone asked from behind her. It sounded like Duncan, but she didn’t remember inviting him into her bed. She knew she must have or else he wouldn’t be here, but she was still confused. “Could you turn that thing off, please. God, it’s loud.”

“Oh, uhm, yeah, sorry,” Courtney said, carefully untangling her arm from his before shutting it off. Then, she sat up, causing his arm to fall from her stomach to lap. Chef’s announcement ran through her head a few times as she tried to figure out what exactly was going on. It took a minute, but the night before came back to her. The challenge. She poked Duncan in the shoulder. “Get up. Make sure Geoff and Harold are up. The next part starts soon. We have to get ready.”

Duncan groaned as means of complaint but forced himself up anyway. He crawled over her and off the bed before gathering his shirt and shoes, “see you soon, I guess.”

“Yeah. Bye.”

Once he left, Courtney turned the light on in the cabin. She grabbed some clothes out of her drawer and quickly changed. She threw her shoes on and started towards the door before realizing that she was the only one up. Bridgette was still asleep. She tiptoed over to Bridgette’s bed and sat down beside her.

“Bridgette, it’s time to get up. The challenge is about to start,” Courtney whispered, gently shaking the surfer.

Bridgette opened an eye, “wha?” she mumbled before falling back asleep and flipping over.

It wasn’t worth it, Courtney decided. Bridgette could sleep. Sure, it meant she was out of the challenge, but it didn’t matter. She had enough faith in herself and her remaining teammates that the loss of Bridgette wouldn’t break them. Besides, she wouldn’t be able to give them much help if she could barely wake up now. Maybe Courtney could force it, but, in the end, it probably wouldn’t do much.

Courtney got up, turned off the light, and exited the cabin. She heard shuffling in the guys’ cabin and saw the light from under the door. She debated waiting for them and walking together but ultimately decided against it. They didn’t need her watching over them; they could make it by themselves.

The walk to the beach was quiet. Gwen and Leshawna were walking slightly ahead of her, but Courtney wasn’t close enough to extend any kind of hello to them. They looked like she felt, dragging their feet and looking at the ground. Today was going to be a long day for everyone.

When they got to the beach, Chef was the only one there. There was a newly build obstacle course, but Courtney didn’t question it. Master Chef motioned Gwen and Leshawna to the left side of the course and Courtney to the right. No one spoke as they waited for their teammates to arrive.

The Screaming Gophers got there first, and Courtney wasn’t surprised. Her boys were late to everything, and DJ, the only one who knew how to be on time, was out of the challenge. Geoff was especially slow, and Courtney knew Duncan wouldn’t leave without him. Harold might, but he’d still manage to be a few minutes late on his own.

Sure enough, none of the bass boys made it by the official challenge start time. She should have just waited for them. Then maybe she could have sped them up some. Chef gave her a questioning look, and she just shrugged, “I’m sorry. I know they’re up. I just don’t know where they are. Bridgette’s not coming, but the guys are. I hope.”

“Ten more minutes,” Chef graciously said, “then we will have to start without them.”

Courtney gave Master Chief Hatchet a grateful smile before looking at the ground. Where were they? Two minutes after the start time, she heard footsteps. Looking behind her, she saw that it was only Harold. Courtney sighed. One was better than none, but it wasn’t as good as three.

“Where are they? They are coming, right?” Courtney whispered to Harold once he joined her.

“They’re up,” Harold answered with a shrug, “Duncan’s ready. Geoff isn’t, but he almost is. They should be here soon. Where’s Bridgette”

Courtney closed her eyes. Of course. “Okay. Thanks, Harold. And she’s not coming. I couldn’t get her up.”

Harold nodded, accepting this information. Then, the two bass went on waiting for their straggling teammates. Finally, five minutes after Harold showed up and seven minutes after the challenge was supposed to start, she heard more footsteps. Two sets of them this time. Courtney recognized Duncan’s heavy thumps well, and the leisurely stroll could only belong to Geoff. They stopped on either side of her, but Courtney was careful not to acknowledge them. They were lucky they made it, for their sakes.

Now that everyone was accounted for, Master Chief explained the rules of the challenge. All they had to do was run through the obstacle course. The only catch was that everyone had to do it until everyone’s time was under a minute during the same round. That could screw them over in a big way.

Master Chief blew the whistle, and the teens were off. Courtney only focused on the course ahead of her, not caring about the other campers or how they were doing. She was in the zone, and she would not get distracted by anything. Not by how tired she was, not by how dirty she was getting, and not by the campers ahead or behind her. She climbed over the wall, swung across the pit, jumped through the tires, crawled under the swinging axes, and crossed the finished line. Heather was the only other person done, and Courtney wondered how much time was left.

A few more seconds passed, in which Geoff finished, and Master Chief blew his whistle once again. A minute was up, and only three people managed to make it through. This was going to take forever. The campers reset at the starting line and went again.

Over the course of the next two hours, Courtney only got better at the obstacle course. She wasn’t the only one. Geoff was consistently hitting the minute mark with her (and, when he wasn’t, it was because he was messing around with Duncan), and Gwen had shaved a decent chunk off her original time. A few, however, had gotten worse. Heather was no longer making it through in under a minute, and Harold had been dismissed from the challenge all together.

Courtney was about to jump through the tires when she heard Master Chief yelling something from in front of her. Without thinking, she looked ahead and saw him towering over someone, clearly upset. She squinted her eyes, hoping she wouldn’t find who she thought it would be. It was. She watched Duncan enthusiastically push himself up and lean towards Chef’s face. Then, he gave him a light kiss on the nose. Courtney blinked. Did that just happen?

Chef’s reaction was automatic, his face scrunched up in anger, and he rose to his full height. Courtney’s legs started moving of their own accord until she was standing a few meters from the scene. She saw Duncan and Geoff whispering to each other.

“One night solitary confinement in the in the boathouse,” Chef said. His voice was low and controlled, and everyone around Courtney let out a gasp. The only ones who didn’t were herself, Geoff, and Duncan.

“Big deal. How scary can it be?” Duncan quipped, and Courtney couldn’t believe how blasé he was being about this.

“Boy, you’re about to find out,” Chef growled, grabbing him by the arm, “come with me.” He addressed the rest of the campers, “wait here while I take care of Mr. Delinquent. Nobody move until I come back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the first half of Basic Straining! The second half is when the elimination order finally changes. I wonder what happens... Hmm... Also, what happens next stays pretty true to canon, so I'm excited. I have the second half all finished, and I'm currently still working on X-Treme Torture. It shouldn't take too long. As always, drop a kudos or comment if you want to. I would really appreciate it.


	8. A Series of Firsts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When we ended last time, Duncan had just gotten himself thrown into the boat house! Now it's time for part two of Basic Straining, and, at the end, we'll have our first major change to the timeline!!!

“One night solitary confinement in the in the boathouse,” Chef said. His voice was low and controlled, and everyone around Courtney let out a gasp. The only ones who didn’t were herself, Geoff, and Duncan.

“Big deal. How scary can it be?” Duncan quipped, and Courtney couldn’t believe how blasé he was being about this.

“Boy, you’re about to find out,” Chef growled, grabbing him by the arm, “come with me.” He addressed the rest of the campers, “wait here while I take care of Mr. Delinquent. Nobody move until I come back.”

Chef left, dragging Duncan with him, and the campers broke out in whispered conversations. Courtney, however, just sank to the ground, not even caring about the mud. She couldn’t believe that just happened. She vaguely registered Geoff squatting down next to her.

“How’s it hanging, Court?” he asked. Geoff could sense she was frustrated and wanted to do something to help.

Courtney sighed, “I don’t know.”

Geoff placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, “you mad at him?”

“I don’t know,” Courtney repeated. She was quiet for a minute as she replayed what just happened in her mind again, “yes.” She shook her head, “no.” She dropped her face into her hands and sighed, “I don’t know.”

“Well, you shouldn’t be,” Geoff said, “bad vibes don’t help anything. Dude just made a mistake is all. Don’t be too hard on him.”

“I just, Geoff, I don’t know what to do,” Courtney admitted, “I don’t know how I’m supposed to react or what. I just, I don’t want him to think this is okay, but I also want to be there. It’s been hard for him, and I don’t know what to do.”

Courtney sighed again before lifting her head and looking at him. She noted his slightly awkward expression, and that’s when she realized who she was unloading all this stuff onto. She had never spoken so vulnerably to Geoff before. “Oh my God, Geoff. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tell you all that. I’m sorry. It’s just came out. I’m so tired.”

Geoff cleared his throat and patted her on the shoulder, “it’s okay, Court. You needed to say it. It’s not good to bottle things in. But, uh, yeah. Can’t help you with what to do. But you’ll get it. You’re good at figuring things out.”

“Thank you,” Courtney said. She didn’t know why, but Geoff’s words actually worked to comfort her. Maybe it was because “don’t bottle things in” was such a Bridgette piece of advice, or maybe it was the completely sincere compliment of her problem solving skills. Or, and she was starting to think this was it, maybe Geoff was just a good person to have around in a crisis. He wasn’t calming in a conventional sense, but his honest and carefree way of looking at things was soothing anyway. “That was actually really nice. Thank you, Geoff.”

 Geoff smiled warmly at her, “no problema. Happy I could help.” He stood and offered a hand to her. She took it, and he pulled her up. “Now we gotta get back in the zone. Ready to kick some gopher ass? Just you and me?”

Yes,” Courtney laughed, “always.”

Soon enough, Master Chief returned from presumably the boathouse. He ordered the campers to get back into formation and they were off again.

Nothing of importance happened for the rest of the day. The biggest thing was Leshawna also getting out of the challenge, lessening the Screaming Gophers’ numbers advantage but not losing it. Once the already eliminated campers finally got up, they mostly hung out around the challenge area. There wasn’t much else to do around camp except watch. Every so often, one of the still in it campers would take a break and chat with their teammates in the guise of a water break.

Finally, around 7:30 PM, Master Chief blew his whistle, causing the campers to come to a halt. He motioned them to where he was sitting, and the five remaining campers gathered in front of him. “It has come to the point in the evening where we will make our final run. You have each hit under a minute and some point, and, if you fail to do so now, you will be out. Good luck.”

The five spread out at the start line and waited for Master Chief to blow his whistle, signifying the start of the timer. Their teammates all leaned forward, some even raising to their feet, and began shouting encouraging things to their teammates. Then, Chef blew the whistle and they were off. They watched intently as they went through the obstacle course. A surprise to no one, Courtney crossed the finish line first, Gwen a little behind her. Heather was next, followed by Geoff. Lastly, Owen crossed the line, only moments before Master Chief blew the final whistle. They all made it!

Master Chief smiled in pride before addressing the campers, “good work, soldiers. I’m proud of your hustle today. Now hit the showers, then head to the mess hall for dinner. More information to come regarding tomorrow’s final challenge.”

Happy and a little surprised to be done for the day, the campers dispersed. Those who spent the day running through the obstacle course headed straight to the showers. They were all muddy and sweaty and their muscles were sore. They hadn’t had more than a two hour break in two days, and a nice, long, hot, soothing showing was much needed.

Those who spent their day watching their teammates run through the obstacle course headed to their cabins to wait for their teammates. Since they had the whole day free, they had already found time for a shower.

Meanwhile, Duncan was laying on the boathouse floor, bored. It’d been a long, lonely, boring day for him with nothing but the worms and his thoughts to keep him company. Sure, DJ stopped by a couple of times, but he never stayed long and only gave him updates on the challenge and reminded him that he was a dumbass, something he already knew. He never offered any information on how Courtney felt regarding his stupid stunt, and Duncan was too scared to ask.

The worst thing about being stuck in the boathouse all day was that it forced him to wallow in his mistake. There was no chance Courtney wasn’t at least a little mad at him, and, the more time passed without seeing her, the more unsettled he became. He knew better than to kiss Master Chief on the nose, yet he had done it anyway. It was dumb, and he wasn’t thinking. He’d been exhausted and bored and it just happened. Duncan didn’t think that explanation would fly, especially not with Courtney.

It had been a long day, and Duncan was ready for something, anything to happen. It was dark when Master Chief had dragged him to the boathouse that morning, and it was dark again. Duncan didn’t know what time it was, but he assumed it was some time between eight and nine. The sun had set thirty minutes ago, and surely the challenge must be finally over.

Sure enough, that was when someone knocked on the boathouse door. Before he had the chance to get up and let whoever it was in, the door opened. He squinted as he rose to his feet, trying to make out his visitor through the darkness and their bright flashlight.

“Duncan?” the voice said, a bit uncertain. He sucked in a breath. Courtney.

“I’m here, Court,” he called out.

Her light found him, and Duncan finally saw her. She was dressed in different clothes than usual, a pair of black athletic shorts, a white long sleeve soccer shirt, and her black tennis shoes. Her damp hair was pulled back into a braid. She didn’t look mad as she held her flashlight in one hand and a bowl of something in the other.

“Are you mad at me?” Duncan asked once she was in front of him.

Courtney sighed and sat down on a crate, “I don’t know. I think so.”

“Okay.” Duncan could work with that. He looked at the bowl in her hands, “what’s that?”

“Dinner. It’s all Chef would serve us. He seems to think it’s a treat, but I’m certainly not eating it. I brought it for you. I thought you might be hungry. Do you want it?”

Duncan smiled to himself as he peered into the bowl. If she was brining him dinner then she must not be too angry with him. He knew she’d let him starve if he were truly in any trouble with her.

There was an oatmeal type substance in the bowl, but it definitely wasn’t oatmeal. He could tell that it was solid, the spoon trapped in the grayish sludge. He took the bowl from Courtney’s hands and set it down, “I think I’m good. But thanks, Court, I really appreciate that.” Then, he pulled an empty bucket over and sat next to her.

“You’re welcome,” Courtney set her flashlight down next to the discarded dinner. She placed her hands carefully in her lap, wringing them slightly, and looked down at them. Then, “I didn’t just come to bring you food. I wanted to see you, but I guess you probably guessed that.” She sighed and looked him in the eyes, “Duncan, we need to talk about this.”

Courtney didn’t have to say what “this” was. Duncan already knew it was the Chef thing. Usually the words “we need to talk” would provoke fear within him, but if she was going to break off their whatever it was, she would had done it already. She wasn’t one to prolong things.

“I know,” Duncan acknowledged. He scooted his bucket closer to her crate and tried his luck with reaching for her hand. She let him hold it, even interlocked their fingers together, and he knew he still had her. “I know it was a dumb, shitty thing to do. I’m sorry. I’m not even going to try to give you an excuse. I just, it just happened. It felt right in the moment. Clearly, it wasn’t.”

“Clearly. Just, I don’t get it,” Courtney sighed and dragged her free hand through her hair, “I’m tired and a little stressed, and I want to get it. You’re not just bored. You have some kind of problem with authority. I know that. I just don’t understand what about Chef bothers you so much. You’ve never acted out in this way before. What’s going on? Why are you egging him on so much? You have to know you’re going to get in trouble.”

Duncan thought on this for a moment. Courtney was right, he did have problems with authority, and they were much worse than his problems with sitting still. The worst was when both of those two things were combined. It was what caused him to rebel. He liked feeling in control, and rebelling helped him feel in control.

In the past, it never bothered him how much trouble he got into. In fact, sometimes he had made it his mission to get into as much trouble as he possibly could. It stemmed from the fact that every single person in his family was a police officer. He wanted them to be angry. He wanted some control over his life. They were never angry. Even the first time he had gotten himself thrown into juvie; they weren’t angry. They were disappointed, sure, but not angry, and that made him angry.

Duncan liked Chef’s anger. It made him feel in control of the situation, like he was the one in charge. It also gave him something to focus on that wasn’t the challenge. It made him feel like he accomplished something, and he knew that was part of the reason he was doing it. He could tell himself and Courtney all day that he was just tired, bored, that it just happened, but that would be a lie. It was because he liked the anger. He just didn’t want her to be angry.

“I like when he gets mad,” Duncan quietly admitted, “it makes me feel in control. I like feeling in control. Breaking the rules is the only way I’ve ever known how to feel in control. I’m sorry.”

“I like feeling in control, too,” Courtney squeezed his hand, “I understand. We just have two different ways of doing it.” She let out a soft laugh, “you break the rules, and I follow them almost perfectly. That’s what helps me feel in control, which I’m sure you find just as frustrating as I find your thing.”

Duncan returned her hand squeeze, “yeah, a little. I’m sorry, babe, but rules only ever feel restricting. I can’t image them helping you feel in control.”

Courtney let out another laugh and winked at him, “which one of us got thrown in the boathouse? Feeling in control about that?”

“Yeah, maybe, but I’m the boathouse with you, aren’t I?” Duncan flirted, standing up and pulling her to her feet also, “I’m feeling pretty good about that.” He let go of her hand and turned to face her. He reached an arm around her back. “Wouldn’t you say?”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “and if you didn’t get thrown in the boathouse, you’d be at the dining hall with me or in the cabin with me or anywhere else with me. The two things aren’t connected, you know.”

Duncan laughed. He had to admit that she was right. There was no way they weren’t going to hang out tonight, the location just happened to be here. He smiled at her, then frowned when he heard her stomach growl uncomfortably loud. He tried to remember the last time she ate and couldn’t. “Speaking of, how about we get out of here? Find us something a little more appetizing to eat?”

“Like breaking the rules?” Courtney asked, a little disbelievingly, “we just talked about this.”

“When was the last time you ate?” Duncan asked, ignoring her question, “because I can’t remember, and I know you’re hungry. Forget about the rules, you won’t have to do anything sketchy, just let me do this for you.”

“I ate, uhm,” Courtney tried to remember. She couldn’t either. She wouldn’t eat the gruel Chef served them tonight or the trash yesterday, and she skipped breakfast yesterday too. The day before that, she didn’t have any appetite coming of the tail end of her concussion. The days before that were hazy, but it didn’t matter if she ate anything during them or not because, three nights ago, she threw up everything in her stomach. And, she had to admit, she was starving. He said she wouldn’t have to do anything sketchy. That he would do this for her. It was sweet, even if technically probably against the rules. “Okay.”

Duncan smiled and offered a hand for a high five, “good, cos I was gonna do it anyway.” She accepted the high five, and he moved his hand to the small of her back. “Now come on, Princess, let’s get you fed.”

Then, he guided her out of the boathouse. She didn’t know where he was taking them, but she knew he had a plan. Soon enough, the two of them were standing outside of the craft services tent. Duncan slowed them to a stop, “wait here. I’ll be back in a minute,” he whispered.

Courtney nodded, and Duncan disappeared into the tent. She assumed he was stealing some food from the producers’ stash, and she found that she didn’t care as much as she should have. He reappeared two minutes later with a paper bag full of something. He grabbed her hand, and they were off again. Once they got to the Killer Bass cabin, he brought them into the girls’ side, pushing the door open with the arm holding the food.

“What did you get?” Courtney asked once they were safely inside the cabin. She had only gotten hungrier since she’d decided to do this, and she was eager to find out what she was going to be eating.

Duncan smiled at her and sat down, his back leaning against the bed, “come here and find out.” She walked over to him, sat down, and peered into the bag. It was stuff for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, along with a few other things. She involuntarily let out a moan. She hadn’t had peanut butter in so long, and it was so good. Duncan laughed, “hungry, Court?”

“Shut up,” Courtney weakly ordered, “I just didn’t realize how much I missed peanut butter.”

“’S okay, Princess. I get it. Let’s make you a sandwich. Then you can eat,” Duncan said before dumping out the contents of the bag. He made her a plate of one sandwich, an apple, and some chips and scooted it in front of her.

Courtney took what was offered to her, practically inhaling the sandwich. She had been so hungry, and it was so good. She finished it right as Duncan finished constructing his own sandwich. He just laughed and handed her that one, too. She gave him an apologetic smile, but she wasn’t going to give it back. He could make another.

As they ate their feast, they intermittently talked about nothing. They sat close, their shoulders brushing. Courtney couldn’t believe he had gone to all this trouble just for her, and she thought maybe she loved him for it. She quickly pushed that thought out of her head. She couldn’t love him, not yet. They weren’t even in a proper relationship! It must be her finally satisfied stomach talking. She did have the overwhelming urge to kiss him, though, and she thought that might be appropriate.

Courtney set her half eaten sandwich down and turned her body towards Duncan. Then, she grabbed his sandwich out of his hands and set that one next to hers. He looked at her expectantly, and she grabbed his face and held it in her hands, “I’m going to kiss you,” she whispered.

Then, before he had a chance to even register what was happening, she closed the distance between them, covering his lips with hers. It took him off guard at first, and he couldn’t believe it was actually happening. He had wanted this for an embarrassingly long amount of time, but he hadn’t wanted to bring it up. He didn’t want to push her into something she wasn’t ready for. Judging by the feel of her perfectly soft lips against his, she was. Then, he relaxed into the kiss, his eyes fluttering closed.

It was soft and slow and perfect. One of his hands settled on her waist and the other on one of her arms. He pulled her closer, onto his lap. After about fifteen seconds, she pulled away, much too soon for his liking. Duncan smiled and slid up to sit on her bed. She quickly followed. “Shit, Court, that was awesome.”

“Yeah,” she agreed before giving him another peck, “it was.”

Fuck. She was so cute that Duncan couldn’t help but kiss her again. He placed one hand on her shoulder blade and the other returned to her waist as he pressed his lips to hers. This time he took the lead, the kiss much more urgent than the last one. He parted his mouth slightly and slid his tongue over her bottom lip before pushing it into her mouth and sliding it across her teeth. He wanted in. She got the message and opened her mouth to meet his.

His tongue slowly explored every corner of her mouth before moving on to massage her tongue. She gasped into his mouth as his tongue ring hit the roof of her mouth, and one of her hands curled around his bicep. This reaction caused him to push her onto the bed completely so that she was laying down, him carefully lowering himself on top of her without breaking the kiss. Then, just to make sure, he pulled away slightly, “is this okay?”

“Yes,” Courtney whispered, “please don’t stop.” Duncan smiled and resumed their previous activity. This time, when his tongue went into her mouth, her tongue met it. She applied pressure around his piercing, and he couldn’t help the growl that escaped his throat. She knew exactly what to do.

They were enjoying each other so much that neither heard the door open.

It had been thirty minutes since Courtney had left her team in the dining hall to bring Duncan something to eat, and her alliance mates were a little worried that she wasn’t back yet. She wasn’t overly angry when she left to find him, but they knew that Duncan had a way of pushing her, even if they were something now. They knew they needed to check on them, so they left for the boathouse. Not finding them there, they figured the only other place they could be was the cabin.

Sure enough, the light was on in the girls’ side of the cabin, and Bridgette knew she had turned it off before her and Courtney left for dinner. They must be in there. Bridgette opened the door to her cabin, DJ and Geoff just behind her, and was greeted with a scene she didn’t expect tonight: Courtney laying in her bed with Duncan on top of her. Their lips were moving against each other’s quite passionately, and neither registered that anyone else had entered the cabin.

“Oh my God,” Bridgette yelped, alerting Courtney and Duncan of their presence. Courtney’s eyes snapped opened, and she moved a hand to his chest, pushing him up. She tried getting out from under him completely but couldn’t with him sitting on her thighs. She sat up the best she could and continued pushing on his chest as she braved a look at her teammates.

Bridgette was looking at the two of them, her face red and her mouth opened. Geoff was smiling widely and giving Duncan a double thumbs up. DJ was very carefully looking towards the ceiling, clearly uncomfortable. Duncan was still sitting on top of her, seemingly frozen in place. “Duncan,” she whispered, “get off me.” That did the trick. He jumped off the bed and pressed a hand onto his forehead.

“Hi, Bridgette,” Courtney greeted as casually as she could, “DJ, Geoff. It’s, uhm, really nice to see you.” She stood up and grabbed Duncan’s hand. “There’s, uh, there’s some actual food if you’re hungry. We’re going to go now but help yourselves to the food. Sorry for, just, sorry.” Then, she pushed past her teammates, dragging Duncan with her.

When the door was securely closed behind them, Courtney leaned into Duncan, her cheek pressed against his shoulder. Her arms stayed glued to her sides, but his came up and around her back. “So that happened.”

 Duncan sighed, “yeah. Shit. They have really poor timing.” He shook his head and pulled away from her, draping an arm around her back and placing a hand on her hip. He started to walk. “So, Court, was that your first kiss?”

Courtney nodded, walking with him, “was it okay?”

“Was it okay?” Duncan repeated, somewhat confused to why she felt the need to ask that, “shit, babe, already told you it was great.” He started walking towards the boathouse. “Best kiss of my life.”

Courtney looked at the ground. She could feel the heat rising up her neck and was grateful that her dark skin would hide the blush. She had never been complimented for something like that before, and she didn’t know what to do with it. “Same,” she mumbled.

“Well, duh, same,” Duncan joked, stroking her side, “not only have you never kissed anyone before, but I’m also incredible at it. You lucked out. Your first kiss could have been with some loser, and instead you get me. I’d say that’s a win.” He let out a loud laugh before getting serious, “but, Court, for real. It was perfect. Not just the kissing, which I really enjoyed, but the whole thing. Best date of my life.”

“That was a date?” Courtney asked, her head flying up to look at him with wide eyes.

Duncan laughed again, “don’t see how it wasn’t. It was just the two of us, I like you more than just a friend, you like me more than just a friend, we ate, it ended with some kissing, neither of us intended for it to be a date. That’s the textbook definition.”

“Oh. Then I agree. Best date of my life, too.” Courtney was quiet for a minute before letting out a soft giggle, “it was also the only date of my life.” Then, she started full on laughing, “I can’t believe I went on my first date, and I didn’t even know it until after.”

Duncan didn’t know why she was laughing, but he joined her. He didn’t hear her real laugh often, and he decided, right at that moment, that it was his favorite sound. Somehow, he pulled her closer to him, causing her laughter to die down some and her to look at him. “Your first date, too? Wow, Court, it’s really been an eventful night for you.”

“A good night,” Courtney corrected, wrapping her arms around his waist.

They had made it to the boathouse and were standing in front of the steps. Duncan shifted until they were facing each other and wrapped his arms around her neck. Courtney laid her head on his shoulder and looked up at him. “I guess this is where I have to leave you.”

Duncan sighed, “yeah. Wish you didn’t have to go. Wish I didn’t have to stay. I promise I’ll never do anything this stupid again.”

“I don’t believe that for a minute,” Courtney started pulling away from him, “you’ll do something this stupid again in approximately two days. But it’ll be fine, just like it’s fine now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, tomorrow,” Duncan grumbled, letting go of her. She started to walk away, but, before she could, he grabbed her arm, “hey, come here,” he said before leaning in and giving her a quick peck on the lips. Then, he released her, “okay, now you can go.”

Courtney smiled at him and subconsciously hovered her fingers over her lips, “okay,” she said before leaving. Duncan watched her go until he couldn’t see her anymore. Then, he entered the boathouse and settled in for a long, lonely night.

As Courtney walked back to the cabin, Master Chief made an announcement over the loudspeaker about tomorrow’s final challenge. It would start at seven, and they were to meet at the large oak tree in the middle of camp. Courtney figured it was probably sometime around nine, so she decided the best course of action would just be to go to bed and get sufficient sleep before the challenge. It had nothing to do with wanting to avoid her teammates after they walked in on her and Duncan kissing. No, not at all.

When she entered her cabin, Courtney found that her teammates and the food were gone. She assumed that they had brought it over to the guys’ side and were eating it there, and she was grateful for that. Hopefully they would eat it all so that she wouldn’t have to deal with keeping the leftovers.

Courtney started getting ready for bed, reflecting on the past day. Or, the past hour, anyway. She didn’t know what she expected when she went to “bring Duncan food,” but it certainly wasn’t her first date and first kiss all in one night. She especially didn’t expect to be the one to kiss him first. At first, when she pressed her lips to his, he didn’t respond, and she was terrified that she had overstepped the boundaries of their new relationship. Then, then, he leaned into it, grabbing her and pulling her to him, and she knew it was fine. He even said it was awesome, an assessment she completely agreed with, and went in for a second (even more awesome) kiss.

It wasn’t like she was planning on kissing him tonight. She had meant it when she said she wanted to take things slow, and five days wasn’t slow. Or maybe it was. She didn’t know proper kissing protocol. Was there even a kissing protocol? It seemed unlikely. Either way, Courtney did. She had to. He found her a feast, a delicious, peanut-butter filled feast, and it made her heart full. She liked it more than she cared to admit when he took care of her. Even though he had a tough exterior, Duncan was a sweet, thoughtful guy, and it was all for her. Only for her. She couldn’t help the smile that threatened to split her face in two.

The door to the cabin opened, pulling Courtney out of her head. She turned around and found Bridgette. She was holding the box of cookies her and Duncan never got around to opening and wearing a sly grin.

“How you doing, Court? Having a nice evening?” Bridgette winked at her friend.

Courtney rolled her eyes. She knew exactly what the surfer was referring to, and she wouldn’t play along. “It’s been okay. Kind of long. I’m ready for bed.”

Now, Bridgette rolled her eyes, “yeah, I guess making out with your delinquent boyfriend is pretty tiring. But I would have thought that would be more than just okay.”

“Shut up,” Courtney said, crossing her arms over her stomach, “he’s not my boyfriend. We’re just hanging out.”

“Just hanging out?” Bridgette raised an eyebrow. She walked over to the CIT and placed a hand on her shoulder. “That looked like a lot more than just hanging out. You usually don’t kiss people you’re just hanging out with, at least not like that. Do you want him to be your boyfriend?”

Courtney shrugged, “I don’t know. We’re good. It’s good. I like what we have.”

While originally Courtney hadn’t wanted to talk about what happened, she found that she liked talking about it, at least with Bridgette. She wouldn’t want to say anything about it to DJ or Geoff or anyone else, but Bridgette was safe. It was nice to have someone to talk to about her new relationship. Both having a friend to talk to and a boy to hang out with were new to her.

“Do you want to know a secret?” Courtney timidly asked, sitting down on her bed. Bridgette followed and nodded enthusiastically. “I like him,” she whispered, “a lot. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

Bridgette laughed and pulled Courtney into a half hug, “I know, babe, but you’re doing fine. He likes you a lot, too. What are you worried about?”

“I’ve just never done this before,” Courtney confided, “like, what if I’m making us take things too fast? Or too slow? I don’t know, it just, it feels really right, but what if it’s not? How do I know if he likes what we have? What if he wants more? Or less? I just, I’ve never done this before. I don’t know how to do this. What if I’m not doing it right?”

Bridgette set the box of cookies down next to her so that she could properly hug Courtney. She rubbed circles into her upper back. “Court, don’t think so much. Obviously I don’t know your relationship, but it’s also obvious that you’re doing great. Are you happy?” Courtney nodded. “Does he seem happy?” Courtney nodded again. “Then tell all those voices asking those questions in your head to shut the hell up. You’ll figure it out. The two of you will figure it out together. Don’t worry about it so much.”

Courtney gave the surfer a small smile, “thanks, Bridge.” She pulled away from her friend and sat up straight, “was there anything you wanted to talk about? Like, how are things with Geoff? You know, he actually gave me good advice earlier, really helped me feel better about the whole boathouse thing when it first happened.”

“Things with Geoff are good. Unlike you and Duncan, we are actually _just_ hanging out. We haven’t had that big conversation yet, but I’m betting it’s soon. And yeah, he’s really smart sometimes, emphasis on sometimes,” Bridgette explained with handwave, “but enough about that. I brought over the cookies you didn’t eat earlier. We thought they should be for you.”

Bridgette slid the box of cookies over to Courtney, who graciously took it. She opened the box and pulled out a few cookies. “I had forgotten about these. We got a little distracted before it was time for dessert. Thanks.”

“No problem,” Bridgette said with a laugh, “and, well, I think you got your dessert. You know, the kissing.”

“Shut up,” Courtney groaned. She ate her cookies before sliding the box back to Bridgette, “you have some, too. I can’t eat them all.”

Bridgette took a few cookies out of the box, “okay. Well, I think I’m going to go back now. I know you said you were ready for bed, so I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I’ll be quiet when I come back.”

Courtney nodded, “yeah, thanks. And thanks for talking. I didn’t realize I wanted to until you were here, but I really appreciated it. Uhm, just make sure Geoff gets good sleep tonight since were down three to two, and you can take all the cookies back. I don’t need to eat any more of them.”

“Yeah, of course,” Bridgette agreed, “I’ll make sure he doesn’t stay up too late. And, are you sure about the cookies? You should save the rest. I don’t know how you got this food, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t you who found it. It would suck for Duncan if he didn’t get any considering he probably picked them out special.”

Courtney shook her head, “no, I’m sure. He got them for _me_ , and if _I_ want to share them with my teammates then _I_ can. They’re mine. He shouldn’t have gotten himself thrown in the boathouse if he wanted some.”

Bridgette laughed, “well, if you insist.” She stood up and grabbed the cookie box. “Later, Court.”

“Later,” Courtney returned, and then Bridgette left the cabin. Courtney finished the last few things she needed to do and settled into bed.

The next morning, Chef woke the campers up at 6:45 over the loud speaker. Since they still had some bread left, Courtney and Geoff made themselves a contraband breakfast of toast with jelly. Hopefully it would serve as the boost they needed to beat the gophers. Neither felt bad because there was no chance Chris or the producers didn’t know about it. If they wanted to stop it, they could have.

The campers gathered at the large oak tree in the middle of camp, everyone on time for once. They were all eager to put this challenge behind them. Master Chief explained that it was going to be a contest to see who could hang upside down the longest. Courtney and Geoff took their position on one tree branch, and Gwen, Heather, and Owen on another. Once everyone was situated, the challenge began officially.

As the challenge went on, Master Chief narrated every single thing. He mouth didn’t stay closed for longer than ten seconds, and it was excruciating, almost worse that the actual challenge. Almost. Ten minutes into it, Chef made a comment about blood rushing towards the head, and that was when Heather decided she’d had enough.

Hanging for so long had made her nauseous, and Chef was right, the blood was pooling in her head and making her dizzy. Before she had the chance to do anything embarrassing like pass out, she loudly announced that she was done with this. Once she was on the ground, Owen quickly followed, but his failure wasn’t by design. He fell hard, knocking Heather down with him. Then there were three.

Five more minutes passed, and Courtney realized she couldn’t do this much longer. She felt the effects Master Chief was describing in painstaking detail, and her head started to feel all fuzzy. She was going to fall soon.

She wanted to warn Geoff and maybe the others that she was coming down, but she didn’t know if she would be able to get the words out without slurring them. Instead, she decided to just try to drop gracefully, like Heather had done. The last thing Courtney needed was a second head injury in as little time as two challenges. However, her poorly thought out movements combined with her declining mental state caused her to slip off the branch, hitting the ground with a loud thud. Great, she was definitely going to have a giant bruise in the morning.

Courtney sat slowly, pulling her knees up and resting her head on them. From above, she heard Geoff call out, “you okay?” She just gave him a thumbs up even though she was decidedly not feeling thumbs up. Soon enough, Bridgette was kneeling next to her, placing a comforting hand on her arm, “Court, are you okay?”

“Yeah, just give me a minute,” Courtney winced, “I’m a little dizzy.”

“I know, baby, it’ll right itself in a minute,” Bridgette soothed as she petted the CIT’s hair with her other hand, “you did really well.”

“Thanks. I just hope Geoff can pull this off. Now help me up,” Courtney ordered as she lifted her head from her knees and stretched out her arms. Bridgette obliged, grabbing a hand and pulling her up.

After Courtney was up, the two walked over to where the rest of their team was standing. Courtney let go of Bridgette’s hand and slipped an arm around Duncan’s waist instead. He returned the gesture by wrapping an arm around her shoulders and rubbing her arm. “You okay, Princess? That looked like it hurt.”

Courtney grimaced before nodding, “it did, but I’m fine. Just a little banged up is all. How are you, though? How was your night in solitary confinement?”

“Boring,” Duncan laughed, “but not too terrible.”

“Good,” Courtney said before turning her attention back to the challenge. “Hey, Geoff, keep it up,” she shouted, “you’re doing great!”

Not wanting Gwen to be without support, Owen shouted, “you’ve got this Gwen!”

This prompted both the Killer Bass and Screaming Gophers to shout their encouragement for Geoff and Gwen respectively. Those two showed their appreciation the best they could, and everyone watched in anticipation for the challenge to finally be over. They didn’t have to wait long. Two minutes later, Gwen fell out of the tree with no warning, leaving Geoff and the Killer Bass to take the win.

Geoff pulled himself up and around the branch, so that he could drop off without risking physical injury. His teammates immediately surrounded him, excited to be this challenge’s victor. Master Chief begrudgingly offered his congratulations to the party boy before dismissing the campers.

While the Killer Bass were celebrating their win, the Screaming Gophers came to terms with their loss. For three of them, the choice was easy. It was finally time to get rid of Heather. The queen bee, however, was not ready to go. It took most of the morning after the challenge, but she came up with a plan that she knew would keep her safe. Hopefully.

After lunch, Heather pulled Lindsay away so that they could talk without their cabinmates listening in. Her plan was simple, and she needed the blonde to help her execute it.

“So, Lindsay, how do you feel about getting rid of Owen?” Heather asked, her tone making it clear that it wasn’t up for discussion.

Lindsay shrugged, “I dunno. I like Owen.”

Heather exhaled slowly, trying to keep her cool, “what do you like better? Owen or being in the game? Because I remember asking – no, telling – you not to hang around those bass girls anymore, yet you let them sink their claws into you even further. I tell you to do things for a reason Lindsay, and, when you don’t do those things, it makes me not want to save you. You could be going home tonight.”

Remembering the conversation she had with Bridgette and Courtney two days ago, Lindsay shook her head, “I don’t think so. I don’t think any would vote for me. I think they all want to vote for you.”

“Lindsay!” Heather placed a hand on her hip and glared, “you have no idea what you’re talking about. Where would you even get that idea?” Lindsay didn’t answer, thinking it was a rhetorical question, but Heather tapped her foot, “well? Answer me you idiot.”

“I don’t think Gwen and Leshawna like you very much. Or Trent,” Lindsay said, “also, Court and Bridge said that you didn’t have the votes to get me out. They said that your threats were, uhm, baseless, I think.”

Heather narrowed her eyes even further, “this is why I told you to stay away from them. They’re filling your head with lies. You don’t need them, you need me. I know you have it in your head that you can do whatever you want, something else you got from them, but you really can’t. Not if you want to stay in this game.”

“I don’t need anyone,” Lindsay stated, causing Heather’s jaw to drop, “not you, not them, not anyone. But whatever, I still like you, Heather. We’re friends. I still want to work with you. So, tell me what you want me to do. I’ll do it. To save both of us.”

“You’re so lucky, Lindsay, that I’ve already made up my mind about this vote,” Heather leaned closer to the blonde, “because you’re so making me want to vote you right now. But I won’t do that. I’ll give you another chance.”

Lindsay shrugged, “thanks,” she said without meaning it, “so, what’s the plan?”

“Good, listen carefully.”

Heather explained the plan to Lindsay. She knew Lindsay was right, that she was most likely the one getting voted out tonight if they didn’t try this, but she couldn’t show weakness. When Lindsay first said that she was spending time with the bass girls, it freaked Heather out in a way she didn’t like. She was scared they were going to show her they didn’t need her, and now that fear was coming true.

Heather knew Courtney was smart, and she knew the blonde one had a way of making people feel accepted. That combined posed a threat she didn’t know how to deal with yet. She knew that when the merge came, the Killer Bass were going to steamroll the Screaming Gophers. The bass were unified in a way the gophers would never be, and Heather was their only hope. She just hoped they’d see that.

After hashing out the finer details, Lindsay and Heather parted ways. The former was going to give a fake plan to Owen, and the latter was going to make an impassioned and desperate plea to her least favorite person. Leshawna. Heather entered the cabin and thanked whatever deity was above when she found that Leshawna was there, but Gwen wasn’t. She took a preparatory breath and started her pitch.

“Hey, Leshawna, how are you? Sucks that we that lost. I really thought Gwen had it!” Heather gave Leshawna a big smile and sat down on her bed. “What were you thinking about for tonight? There is so much to think about!”

Leshawna regarded Heather suspiciously. There was no way the queen bee didn’t know she was in trouble, and there was no way she didn’t come up with some scheme to save herself. “You’re kidding, right? We finally have a chance to get you out. Not much to think about.”

Heather’s eye twitched, but she kept smiling, “that’s so fair, Leshawna! I get it, we’re not the greatest friends. But I really think you might want to reconsider that stance! I’m not going to pretend that we’ll be allies or anything if listen to what I have to say, but I think you’ll find it really interesting.”

“Fine, tell me,” Leshawna sighed. There was almost no chance that whatever it was Heather had to say was going to change her mind, but she was curious to see just how low Heather was willing to sink.

“Okay, the merge is soon. Like next challenge or the challenge after that. At this point, we, as a team, have no chance of breaking up the Killer Bass. All of us, myself and you included, are playing for tenth through sixth place. You might find it beneficial to have me around. Who else would be able to break them up?”

Leshawna hated to admit it, but that did make some sense. The Killer Bass were a strong team, and they were a lot closer than the Screaming Gophers were. Still, it was Heather. If they let her slip by now, she would find a way to make it to the end of the game. “You really think the bass are that big of a threat?”

“Yes!” Heather nodded frantically for emphasis, “Courtney and blonde one are an obvious pair. Courtney and juvie are another obvious pair. Blonde one and other blond one are a third obvious pair. DJ, juvie, and other blond one are an obvious trio. Courtney, DJ, and blonde one are another obvious trio. All five of them are an obvious alliance. Only glasses is on the outs. Then, it seems that Lindsay has been won over by Courtney and blonde one, so there’s another trio. I don’t think the five, sorry, four of you left would be able to dismantle that without me.”

Leshawna sighed. Heather had a point. There was no one better at breaking people up than her. It might be worth it to find out how exactly she wanted the vote to go. “So what do you wanna do about it?”

Heather smiled, “I’m so glad you asked, Leshawna! I think our best plan of action would be to get rid of Owen here. I know I can’t be the only one getting tired of him.” Leshawna made a sound of agreement. “He’s not a competitor like you and me. I’d say you’re playing the game the second hardest on this team, after me, but I don’t think he’s playing hard at all.

“Lindsay is currently convincing him that we need to get rid of Gwen. Depending on what you say, he will be the only one voting for Gwen. I know she’s your friend, and I see no reason to get rid of her yet. You wouldn’t even have to tell her and Trent about this if you don’t want to. Lindsay and I plan on voting for Owen. We would like you to vote with us. 3-2-1, assuming Gwen and Trent vote for me, gets him out.”

“And if I don’t agree to this plan?” Leshawna asked, crossing her arms, “what happens then?”

Heather shrugged as if she hadn’t thought it over, “I guess Linds and I will vote for Gwen. Then it’d be 3-3. Do you really want to find out what Chris would do if there’s a tie? Because I certainly don’t.”

Leshawna thought this over. Once again, Heather was right. She was a little scared of what Chris would do if the case of a tie. No way would the tie breaker be fair, if there was even a tie breaker. She really did not want to work with Heather, but she did want to win. Heather even said this wouldn’t mean they were allies. It was just the two of them coming together once to make sure they had a chance post merge.

“Can I think about it?” Leshawna asked with a sigh, “I’m not too high on letting you slip by again, but it almost sounds worth it.”

Heather nodded, “of course! Just let me know before voting so that I can make the most informed decision.” She stood up, “I’m going to find literally anything else to do now. I’ll give you some time to think about.”

With that, Heather exited the cabin, leaving Leshawna alone to think everything she had said. And think she did. Leshawna spent the afternoon running scenarios through her head, and they all pointed to one thing. Keep Heather. It was frustrating, and she needed a second, unbiased opinion. Specifically, an opinion from someone who knew the Killer Bass better than her and Heather did. An opinion from a bass themselves, and she knew just the fish.

Leshawna walked over to the Killer Bass cabin and knocked on the guys’ door. Her and Harold were friends. They had been friends all season, ever since he made that claim that he had never seen a girl like her in real life. His teammates mostly ignored her when she came by, but she didn’t mind. Geoff answered the door, they exchanged pleasantries, and he was soon replaced by Harold.

“What’s up, Leshawna?” Harold stepped onto the porch and shut the door behind him, “I’d say I’m sorry that you lost, but I’d be going home if you didn’t.”

Leshawna laughed and waved a dismissive hand, “boy, it’s fine. That’s actually why I’m here. I guess it’s time you finally tell me about those teammates of yours.”

“What about them?” Harold asked, moving off the porch so that they could talk without those teammates listening.

“Just how tight are they? Do you think they’ll stick together after the merge?”

Harold shrugged, then nodded, “I guess they’re pretty close. Why do you ask?”

“I’m having trouble deciding who to vote out tonight,” Leshawna sighed, crossing an arm over her chest and pressing a hand to her check, “Heather seems to think the only way any of us can get past your teammates is if we have her. Now, I don’t want to let her through again, but I also want a fighting chance. I don’t want your teammates waltzing their way to the final five without me, you know? I just need a second opinion. Can you help me out?”

“Yes. Anything to keep them from the finals,” Harold launched into the topic of his teammates head first. Pent up resentment made him eager to spill all he could. Chances were, he wasn’t making it to the merge, and someone needed to be able to defeat them. Why not Leshawna? As they discussed the Killer Bass and tonight’s vote off, they walked aimlessly around camp.

It took thirty minutes, but Leshawna finally felt she had all the information she needed to make the right choice tonight. Her and Harold went their separate ways, and she let Heather know her final decision. She would go with her, vote for Owen, keep Heather around to live another day. She just hoped she wasn’t making a huge mistake.

The afternoon and early evening passed, and it was finally time for the marshmallow ceremony. The Screaming Gophers went into the confessional one by one to cast their vote. Everyone felt good about their chances of staying tonight, which meant it was going to be a blindside, something Chris was excited for. The Screaming Gophers’ marshmallow ceremonies were always so much more exciting than the Killer Bass’. The campers filed in around the campfire, and Chris started the ceremony.

“I only have five marshmallows on my plate, and these marshmallows represent the campers that will continue to be campers,” Chris pointed a finger at the teens and took a dramatic pause, “here.”

Looking at the campers, he found none of them were wearing scared or nervous expressions. This was going to be fun. “You’ve all cast your ballots in the confession can. If I do not call your name, you must immediately go down to the Dock of Shame, catch the Boat of Losers, and go home. And you can’t come back. Ever!”

Chris looked at the gophers intensely, and they finally started to squirm. Perfect. “With zero votes: Trent, Leshawna, and Lindsay.” As he called their names, they came up to collect their marshmallow. “Everyone left received at least one vote.” He paused again. Gwen looked around to her friends in barely masked panic, Owen’s face showed hints of confusion mixed with anxiety, and Heather kept her expression controlled. It was blank and betrayed no emotions.

“With one vote, Gwen!” The goth let out a sigh of relief and ran to collect her marshmallow. “We are down to the final marshmallow of the night. There are two of you, and one of these. One of you received two votes, and the other three.” Chris paused again, wanting to pull out as much emotion as he could from Heather and Owen. Heather still remained calm, something Chris was used to, but Owen was now visibly panicking.

“With two votes, the final marshmallow goes to… Heather!”

Once her name was called, Heather face morphed into a sinister grin as Gwen and Trent gasped from behind her. She stood up and collected her marshmallow. Owen hadn’t moved yet, still mentally reacting to his name not being called. Then, almost mechanically, he stood up. “It’s, uh, it’s really been fun, guys.” He said, his eyes filling with tears, “Good luck, everyone. I guess.” Without saying goodbye to anyone individually, he walked toward the dock of shame.

Trent quickly followed after him, wanting to give his cabinmate some comfort. Gwen looked between Heather and Leshawna, a disgusted expression on her face. “Wow, Leshawna, I really thought you were better than that. We finally had the chance to get rid of _her_ ,” she pointed to Heather, her voice dripping with ice, “and you waste it? I can’t believe it. You _hate_ her.”

Then, she shook her head and stormed away from the fire pit. Leshawna sighed. She had known there was a chance Gwen would react like this, but it still felt shitty. She just looked at Heather and said, “I really hope I did not just screw myself saving you. You’re welcome,” before leaving also.

Somewhere in the midst of all this, Chris and Chef snuck away from the fire pit to see Owen off. They would both miss him, but the votes were the votes. Nothing they could do about it. This left Heather and Lindsay alone by the fire.

Heather looked at the fire, her back to Lindsay. She was no longer smiling, just watching the fire with a blank face. “Some people are just so touchy. Don’t you think?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there it is. Sorry if you really liked Owen, but it was the only thing that made sense to me. I flirted with eliminating Harold here and Owen in X-Treme torture, but I figured why not keep the next chapter canon-ish. It doesn't really make a difference. I'm about 3200 words into my next chapter, and I hope to have it done by next Wednesday (6/5). I make no promises.
> 
> Thank you to whoever reviewed on my tumblr and to everyone else who has reviewed. Also, someone asked about chapter five on my tumblr, and I answered it there. It should be tagged as "my fic." And if you didn't know I had a tumblr, I do. You can find me at i-wish-i-was-kidding.tumblr.com. Sometimes I post little updates about my fic on there.
> 
> As always, leave a kudos or a comment if you feel moved to. I always appreciate them!


	9. The G Word

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I know this took a little longer, but please enjoy part one of X-Treme Torture.

“Now for the cool swag!” Chris had just finished explaining the extreme challenge to the campers, and they were now waiting for him to get to the good part. They had been promised a reward this challenge, and they were all eager to find out what it was. “Whoever scores the most challenges gets bragging rights for the night, saves their butts from elimination, and wins a tripped-out, multi-massage, mobile shower!”

Chris motioned over to said shower, and the campers took in its beauty. Courtney clutched Bridgette’s right shoulder with both of her hands and whispered, “shower, shower,” repeatedly while Bridgette wrapped her arm around her, “I know, baby, I know.” Lindsay grabbed the hands of the people beside her, Heather and Leshawna, “it’s so pretty, guys, it’s beautiful.”

Others, however, were less enthused. Gwen rolled her eyes at the other girls’ antics, and Geoff sent a look that could only be described as absolutely terrified to DJ and Duncan.

“Can it be?” Heather gasped, her eyes sparkling.

Chris flashed his million-watt smile, “oh, it be!”

“Wow, a shower,” Gwen rolled her eyes again, “this is definitely worth whatever harm this challenge is sure to cause us.”

“Shut it, weird goth girl,” Heather marched over to Gwen and poked a finger onto her chest, “we _are_ winning this shower. Just because you don’t think hygiene is necessary doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t.”

Gwen swatted Heather’s finger away, “sorry I don’t adhere to society’s unrealistic beauty expectations. I stay clean. I just don’t glorify it like all of you do. It’s pathetic.”

Heather’s eyes narrowed, “It’s not pathetic, it’s cathartic. It’s pampering. You should try it sometimes. Maybe then you wouldn’t be so glum all the time. Tell me, Gwennie, do you enjoy being unlikable?”

“All that so-called pampering doesn’t seem to do you any good,” Gwen grumbled, “considering you’re the least likable one here.”

During this exchange, Chris boarded the plane and started it back up again, causing all conversation to stop. “Okay, gang, chow for brekkie and report back in twenty minutes for the X-TREME SPORTS CHALLENGE!” Then, he took off, leaving the campers to breathe in the cloud of dirt the airplane left behind.

The campers entered the dining hall, grabbed their breakfasts, and sat down at their tables. The Killer Bass sat in their usual formation and discussed their strategy for this challenge.

“Okay, so only three of us are really in this, four if you count the Sea Doo driver,” Courtney said, “DJ, Geoff, and Harold. It’s up to you. Admittedly I don’t like that. At all. It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just that I’d feel a lot better if I had any control at all. It’s sky diving, moose riding, and water-skiing, do you think you can do it?”

From his spot next to her, DJ grimaced, “I don’t know. I’ve never sky dived before, and I’m terrified. I’m not too excited about having to do it. Y’all will catch me?”

Courtney nodded, “yes. I promise we will get that couch under you. We won’t let you get hurt. And you can do it, DJ. I believe in you probably the most.” She looked across the table at Geoff, “and you, Geoff?”

“Oh, I’ve got this!” Geoff exclaimed, “it’s going to be insane! Don’t worry, Court, this is the kind of thing I live for!”

“Yes, I assumed so,” Courtney nodded her approval, “very good.” She turned to Harold, who was sitting next to Geoff, “and, Harold? Waterskiing?”

Harold rolled his eyes. When was his team going to get that they could trust him in challenges? He had never let them down majorly before. “Yes, Courtney. I can waterski, and I can definitely beat Lindsay at it. Gosh, can you just trust someone who isn’t you for once in your life?”

Courtney held her hands up in surrender, “I never said I didn’t trust you, Harold. I was just making sure everyone knew what they were doing.” She flashed him a smile before turning to address Duncan and Bridgette, “all that’s left is deciding who drives the Sea Doo. One of you two should do it considering everyone else has already been assigned something, and, just, it shouldn’t be me. Not if want to avoid losing, anyway. So, who wants it?”

Bridgette smiled to herself before sticking her hand up. This was right up her alley. Courtney, however, wasn’t looking at her. No, she was looking at the boy next to her. Bridgette sighed as Courtney asked, “Duncan?”

“Yeah, babe, I’ve got it,” Duncan answered, draping an arm around Courtney’s shoulders.

Bridgette frowned, and DJ and Geoff laughed. They saw what just happened, Courtney completely disregarding her existence. She opened her mouth to respectfully disagree, but the CIT spoke before she could.

“Great, so it’s all official,” Courtney turned to address all her teammates, “Duncan will be driving the Sea Doo, and Bridgette and I will just be, I don’t know, moral support.”

“Actually, Courtney,” Bridgette interjected, “I’d like to drive the Sea Doo.”

Courtney furrowed her brows before adopting an apologetic expression, “oh my God, Bridgette, I’m sorry! I didn’t even give you a chance to say you wanted to do it. I just assumed Duncan would be best for this! You think you’re the better choice?”

Bridgette nodded causing Duncan to scoff, “yeah right, Malibu. This is all me.”

“Be nice,” Courtney hissed, turning towards Duncan, “she might actually be the better choice. Let her talk.” She straightened herself up and turned back to Bridgette, “Sorry about that, I’m sure you’ll be a fine driver.”

Not offended by Duncan’s comment, Bridgette just giggled and waved her hand, “oh, don’t worry about it, it’s fine. I get it, he wants to do it. I just would be better, I think.”

“How so?” Duncan asked, raising his brow, “because I have my motorcycle learner’s permit and a shitload of experience on ATVs, which are just land Sea Doos. I know how to drive things like this, Malibu.”

Bridgette giggled again, “you don’t think someone called ‘Malibu’ doesn’t know how to drive a Sea Doo? Duncan, I’m an open water lifeguard. Sometimes open water lifeguards have to drive a Sea Doo. Have you actually ever driven one before? Because I have.”

Duncan didn’t have a response to that. Bridgette was right, he had never driven a Sea Doo before, and she had. No doubt, that would make her the better choice in Courtney’s eyes, and it was mostly up to her. He, and everyone else, had long ago stopped questioning her decisions unless they had proof something was better. For example, Bridgette wanting to drive the Sea Doo instead.

Sure enough, Courtney nodded, “okay, yes, that is better. You’ll drive the Sea Doo, and Duncan and I will be the moral support!” She smiled at her teammates, “I’m feeling really good about this challenge, guys. We will win this. We have to. It’s probably the most important challenge we’ve had so far.”

“Most important challenge we’ve…” Duncan repeated, trying to figure out what she meant by that. Judging by the confused looks on their teammates faces they didn’t know either. This challenge wasn’t different than any of the others. Except for one thing, “because of the shower. It’s the most important because of the shower reward.”

“Yes, because the shower reward,” Courtney confirmed, a bit disbelievingly. It certainly wasn’t because they were down in numbers or facing a potential difficult vote off. “It’s imperative that we win. I just really need this, okay.”

Duncan chuckled and rubbed her upper arm, “yeah, you do. You’re getting a little ripe.”

“Excuse me, what?” Courtney’s mouth hung slightly open, and she gave him her best glare, “That wasn’t what I meant at all, and you know it! And it’s not like you smell –” she shook her head, deciding it wasn’t worth it, and turned to Bridgette, “aren’t you excited about the possibility of winning that shower, Bridge? It looks really nice.”

“It does look really nice, Court,” Bridgette agreed, giving her friend a sympathetic smile, “and I am really excited about the possibility. Normally I wouldn’t care that much, but it’s been so long since I’ve had a good cleaning.”

Courtney nodded, “tell me about it! I feel like I haven’t been satisfyingly clean since I got here six weeks ago. The dirt is part of me now, and that’s not okay.”

Not everyone got the importance of the shower. Geoff looked between Bridgette and Courtney with a blank look on his face, not understanding why this shower meant so much to them. It’s not like they didn’t have perfectly good showers in the communal baths. He sent DJ a questioning look, and he just shrugged. “What’s the big deal, dudettes? ’S just a shower?”

“Just a shower?!” Courtney jaw had dropped completely, “Geoff! It’s so much more than just a shower! I don’t know what tricked out means, really, but I assume it means that there will be actual water pressure! That there will be actual temperature control! Not to mention, the stalls won’t be next to the disgusting toilets! We won’t have to wear shower shoes. It’s, we need to win it. I won’t be able to handle it if we don’t.”

Geoff blinked as he processed her answer before turning to Bridgette. She just laughed and patted his knee, “don’t worry about it. It’s just something nice for us to look forward to.”

“Ooookay,” Geoff said, drawing out the word, “I just don’t get why you’re so into it. You’re usually not into all that girly shit, and that’s cool.”

Bridgette turned to face him carefully, “all what girly shit, Geoff? Are you talking about the shower?” Geoff nodded and opened his mouth to continue. Bridgette just shook her head, she didn’t want him to make this worse for himself, “I wouldn’t call that girly shit. I’d call it good hygiene practices and taking care of yourself. I give my body the love it deserves, and a nice shower is part of that sometimes.”

Geoff frowned. Was he the only one who didn’t get the appeal of a shower? Because, while only Courtney and Bridgette had been vocal about it, no one else seemed confused. “Okay, Dunc, what about you? You don’t care about this, right?”

“You’re kidding, right?” Duncan asked, looking at Courtney before turning back to Geoff, “I’ve found that there are, uh, _certain benefits_ that come with keeping myself fresh. A shower wouldn’t be the worst thing for me right now.”

“Really, dude, you too?” Geoff grumbled before, just like he always seemed to do, putting his foot in his mouth. “It’s not like you still have to impress her. She’s already your girlfriend.”

“Oh, Geoff, no,” Bridgette sighed, “why did you just say that? That’s not how it works.”

While Bridgette’s reaction to Geoff’s screw up was relatively subdued, Duncan and Courtney’s joint reaction was completely flustered. Courtney looked at him with wide eyes before looking at Geoff before looking down at her lap. Duncan’s arm slid off her shoulder and feel limply at his side. He kept looking between her and his plate.

“What, no. I’m not –” “– she, well –” “– we aren’t –” “– we’re just,” they stammered, not actually saying anything. This went on for about a minute. Neither wanted to outright say Courtney wasn’t Duncan’s girlfriend, but they also didn’t want to say she was. They were still in that middle ground. Finally, Courtney took a deep breath and gave him one last look before standing up, “we haven’t talked about that yet. I’m going to go brush my teeth.” Then, she left.

“Hey, man, thanks for that. I really appreciate it.” Duncan ran a hand through his mohawk. His sarcasm wasn’t hard to pick up on.

Geoff grimaced, “sorry. Didn’t know.”

“Whatever, man,” Duncan stood up, his stool scraping against the dining hall floor, “I’m out, too.”

With both Duncan and Courtney gone, it didn’t take long for the remaining Killer Bass to also scatter. Harold left first. There was no need for his presence at the table anymore. Then, Bridgette told DJ and Geoff to just go, that she would take care of their trash. This morning hadn’t gone well for anyone, and she needed a moment away from her team. Specifically, Geoff. What better way to do that than do something nice for someone else?

Bridgette gathered their trash and walked over to the trashcan. Besides Chef, the only other person in the dining hall was Gwen. The two weren’t friends, but they had been friendly the few times they had interacted with each other. Neither had ever given the other a reason not to like them. Bridgette waved and smiled, “hi, Gwen. How are you?”

Gwen returned her smile, “I’m fine. You?”

“I’m good,” Bridgette threw away the trash and turned to leave. Then, a small piece of paper flew over to where they were standing. They both looked at it curiously, and Gwen picked it over.

The goth flipped the note over in her hands a few times and saw that there was a heart drawn onto the front. Was this a love letter? She opened it and read the top, _For The Girl With The Smoldering Eyes_. It was!

“Well, what is it?” Bridgette asked, peering over Gwen’s shoulder.

“I think it’s just some corny haiku poem,” Gwen tried to act casual, but her tone of voice made it clear that she didn’t think it was corny at all. Had Trent written it for her?

Bridgette squealed. This was so exciting! “Well? What does it say? Read it!”

“Uhm, sure, okay,” Gwen said, trying to hide a smile.

_“For The Girl With The Smoldering Eyes:_  
Beacon of Sunlight  
Such Beauty I Cannot Grasp  
Behold: A New World  
From: An Admirer”

Bridgette squealed again, “woah! Some dude’s crushing big time!” She looked down at the ground before looking back at Gwen. She didn’t want this to be the case, she wanted it to be for her, but, “it’s probably for you.”

Gwen’s smile broke through, “really? I was going to say it was for you.” She wasn’t going to say that, but she had to return the favor.

“Maybe,” Bridgette smiled, “but Trent is totally crunching on you!” She held out her hand for the note, “I’ve seen the way he always scams an extra muffin for you.”

“Yeah? But Geoff is so into you!” Gwen handed Bridgette the note so that she could inspect over, “he’s always doing dumb, little things to get your attention.”

Bridgette laughed. That was definitely true. There wasn’t a day that went by that Geoff didn’t try something. Still, it was most likely for Gwen. Chances were Geoff did not write a haiku. Chances were Geoff didn’t even know what a haiku was. However, before she could voice this, Gwen did it for her, “then again, Geoff probably couldn’t even pronounce haiku let alone write one.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Bridgette asked. Even though she had just thought it, she didn’t like it when Gwen implied it. Her tone was jovial, but they weren’t joking anymore.

“Nothing!” Gwen waved her hand, “he’s just not exactly the scholarly type.”

That assessment was completely true, and Bridgette knew it. That didn’t mean she couldn’t feel offended on behalf of Geoff, whom Gwen didn’t even really know, or hope that he did this nice thing for her.

“Oh, and I suppose Trent is busy boning up on his Nietzsche in his spare time?”  Bridgette retorted, causing Gwen to angrily grab the poem out of her hands.

This sparked a friendly argument between the two girls, both wanting the haiku to be for them. Bridgette couldn’t believe Gwen didn’t think Geoff was smart, and Gwen couldn’t believe Bridgette didn’t think Trent was authentic. In an effort to prove they were right, they ended up putting a wager on it. The winner would get the loser’s dessert for three days, the pride of knowing they were right, and a nice note from the boy they liked.

Meanwhile, Courtney was taking a moment to think about her, Duncan, and what they were doing together. This wasn’t the first time someone had referred to her as his girlfriend, but it was the first time someone had done it in front of him. While she usually just shrugged it off and moved on, she couldn’t this time. She didn’t want to say the wrong thing, and it seemed that he had the same problem.

Courtney sighed as she leaned back on the challenge couch. Did she even want to be his girlfriend? She didn’t even hesitate a little when she told herself, “yes, absolutely.” She enjoyed Duncan’s company more than she had ever enjoyed another person being around, both in their conversations and the physical intimacy they had shared. But it wasn’t just up to her. He had a say in it too, and, while she liked to assume he felt the same way, she couldn’t just decide for both of them.

Of course, there was always the small possibility that she was just a way for him to pass the time this summer, that she was a fling. Courtney doubted that was the case, but there was a small part of her, the part that she wanted to turn off but couldn’t, that screamed at her that it was.

Sitting back up, Courtney saw Duncan approaching her. She placed her hands carefully in her lap as she waited to see what he was going to do. He sat down next to her, not as close as normal but still not far, and gave her a reassuring smile. Then, he swung his legs over the arm of the couch and plopped his head into her lap. She looked down at him and pried her hands out from under his head.

“What are you thinking about, Court?” Duncan asked, peering at her through squinted eyes.

“Oh, you know,” Courtney shrugged as she placed a hand on his chest, “just about, well, we’ll talk about it later.”

Duncan laughed and placed his hand over hers. Even though she didn’t outright say it, he knew exactly what Courtney was referring to, and it wasn’t a big surprise that that was what filled her mind. He’d done a lot of thinking about it too in the few minutes since he left the dining hall. “Yeah, I know. Want to know what I’m thinking about?”

Courtney nodded. She knew the rules to this game well, it was something they had played all summer, long before she even considered him a friend. “Yes.”

Duncan didn’t answer right away. Instead, he flipped back into a sitting position and placed his hand on the middle of her thigh. He took a deep breath and looked around to make sure there was no one nearby before saying, “you could be my girlfriend. I’d like that a lot.”

“What?” Courtney eyes snapped to his. She hadn’t expected him to say that now, and she hadn’t expected him to say that so plainly when he did.

“What?” Duncan repeated with a wink. He knew she heard him, and he was almost 100% positive she would agree. He didn’t need to say it again.

“Did you just ask me to be your girlfriend?” Courtney whispered, “now? Right before the challenge? Don’t we need to talk about this?”

Duncan shrugged, “don’t see why we do. It’s a fairly simple question. And I haven’t asked you yet, I was just saying you could be. If you want me to ask I can, but only if you promise to say yes.”

“Okay, then, ask!” Courtney said a little excitedly. She couldn’t believe it was this easy! As always, she had gotten too much into her head and was worried about nothing.

Duncan smiled at her, and it was probably the most genuinely happy she’d seen him all summer, “Court, will you be my girlfriend?”

Courtney nodded, “yes, Duncan, of course I’ll be your girlfriend! Wait. Does this mean you’re my boyfriend?”

“Shit yeah, babe,” Duncan squeezed her leg, causing Courtney to loop her arm through his and cover his hand with hers. He had to take a moment to revel in how right this felt. A week ago he was content with “ _just seeing where it takes us_ ,” but he’d grown increasingly eager to put a formal label on what they’d been doing. He wanted to call her his girlfriend and call himself her boyfriend, and he had no problem admitting this to her. “there’s nothing I want to be more.”

Then, after taking one last look around, Duncan leaned over and kissed her square on the lips. It only lasted a few seconds, but it was enough for both of them. It was getting closer to the start of the challenge, and more people were going to start showing up soon. They just basked in the glow of their upgraded relationship as they waited.

Soon enough, Chris announced it was time for the challenge to start, so the campers wished DJ and Trent good luck before they boarded the plane. The Killer Bass and Screaming Gophers started aimlessly pushing their couches. The plane wasn’t high enough for sky diving yet, and there was no way of knowing where they needed it to be until they actually saw their teammate falling from the sky.

After ten minutes of just pushing and chatting, someone finally jumped out of the plane, and they were coming down fast. The gophers quickly identified the jumper as Trent, and he was falling straight to them. Perfect! What wasn’t perfect was the fact that he hadn’t pulled his parachute yet. Hopefully that wouldn’t mess him up too much. Then, before anyone had the chance to realize he was a bit off mark, he hit the ground hard, leaving a Trent-shaped indentation in the sand. That wasn’t good.

While Chef took care of Trent, the Killer Bass waited for DJ to jump out of the plane. They hoped he would have better luck than Trent did. From her spot at the middle of the couch, Courtney half listened to Bridgette and Geoff’s disaster of a conversation. It had something to do with romance, but she wasn’t following. No one seemed to be.

“Think Deej’ll do better than pretty boy over there?” Duncan asked from next to her just as Geoff said something about peeing in the snow. Yeah, it was time to stop listening to that conversation.

“He better,” Courtney turned her head toward him, “Of course I don’t want him to get hurt, but we need to win this challenge. I don’t think I can stress that enough. We need this win.”

Duncan laughed, “yeah, yeah, the shower, I know. The thing you love mo–” he started, but he was soon cut off by Courtney shushing him. It had suddenly gotten harder to push the couch, and she didn’t know why.

Courtney looked to her left and found that both Bridgette and Geoff had stopped pushing. To make matters worse, Geoff had his shorts pulled down slightly, just enough for her to see the tribal sun that was tattooed onto his right butt cheek. She cringed slightly and looked away as quickly as she could. Why was this happening now?

“Geoff, maybe don’t do that right now. I don’t think anyone wants to see that,” Courtney said. She watched Duncan turn his head towards the blonds before he chuckled and let out a, “nice, man!”

Then, they heard it. The screaming, and it sounded a lot like DJ. Courtney picked her head up and saw him drifting through the sky. Thankfully, his parachute was activated. He was a bit away from them, but not too far. They just needed to go now. “Okay, let’s go,” Courtney ordered. They did and, a minute later, DJ landed on the couch.

Safely on the ground, DJ checked himself for injury, “everything’s still here? Nothing’s broken? Whew.”

Courtney walked around to the front of the couch and gave him her brightest smile before patting him on the shoulder, “told you we wouldn’t let you get hurt. You did a really great job.”

“Thanks, Court,” DJ said, his voice full of relief, “and thanks everyone, for not letting me die. That was so scary. I never want to do anything like that again.”

“You’re welcome,” Courtney laughed, “you know, it was really brave of you to do that, and it was great start of the challenge for us. You should be proud.”

DJ looked down at the ground, uncomfortable from the praise, and stood up, “yeah, well, no problem, guys. Anything I can do for the team.”

Then, the Killer Bass walked over to where the Screaming Gophers were, per the request of Chef. Once they got there, Chris flew over that area, a little too close to the ground for anyone’s comfort and declared the Killer Bass the winners. He gave them thirty minutes before Geoff and Leshawna had to meet back at the beach for the extreme rodeo moose challenge.

Due to half an hour not being enough time to actually do anything meaningful, most of the campers elected to stay at the beach while they waited. Bridgette decided it was time for a haiku update. While Geoff hadn’t offered her much of anything, maybe Trent had. She joined Gwen and the other Screaming Gophers just in time to hear Trent ask about his hair before being wheeled away by Chef. Judging by the goth’s general negative demeaner, she guessed it wasn’t good new.

Bridgette offered Gwen a sympathetic smile and wrapped her arm around her shoulders before walking her away from her teammates.

“So it wasn’t from Trent,” Gwen moaned, “all he cares about is his stupid hair. Did you find out anything from Geoff?”

Bridgette laughed and released Gwen, “not about the haiku. I did find out that he has a tattoo on his ass, though. He tried showing me, but I looked away.”

Gwen joined in with Bridgette’s laughing, “yikes, that’s rough! But also really funny. Are you going to try again?”

“Obviously,” Bridgette nodded, “I just have to come up with a different way to ask him. I tried being subtle, but he didn’t pick up on it. I think the direct approach would be better, I just don’t want to be too direct. I’ll figure it out.”

“I can help you come up with something if you want?” Gwen offered, “then you can ask him before he has to ride the moose.”

“Really?” Bridgette asked to which Gwen just nodded, “thanks!”

While the pair began devising their plan, other campers formed groups or went off to do their own thing. Heather pulled Lindsay to the dock so that they could talk without anyone listening in, and Leshawna was taking this time to prepare for the challenge. Riding a moose would be tough, but she knew she had to get this. They were already down, and she wanted that shower.

Harold went back to the cabin, finding that way more interesting that anything that could be happening at the beach. He’d rather be alone that hang out with most of the others. Courtney, Geoff, and DJ were having some conversation about something that wasn’t important. Duncan claimed he had something he needed to do and promised Courtney that he would be back by the time the next challenge started. He wouldn’t tell her what it was no matter how many times she asked him, but he made sure she knew it wasn’t anything bad.

The thirty minutes passed rather quickly, and it wasn’t long before Chris announced, “okay, cowpokes, let’s start the rodeo moose challenge!”

Knowing this was her chance, Bridgette pulled Gwen to meet Geoff before he had to compete.

“Sup, Bridge!” Geoff greeted, offering a high five to Bridgette. She accepted it, so he moved to Gwen. “Sup, uh, you wanna help me out here?”

Bridgette bit her lip to keep from laughing as Gwen awkwardly accepted the high five, “oh, I’m Gwen.”

“Right on, Gwen! I knew that,” Geoff smiled, “okay I didn’t know that, but I do now! Nice to meet ya. I’m Geoff, but you probably knew that.”

“I did,” Gwen involuntarily giggled, “but it’s nice to officially meet you, too.” She gave the pair a bright smile. Then she realized. She just giggled! What was happening to her? She tried to transform her face into its usual uninterested expression, but she found she couldn’t. It was these people, Bridgette and Geoff, it was impossible not to be happy around them. Geoff even more so than Bridgette. No wonder they were into each other.

Neither blond noticed Gwen’s slight pause. Geoff just returned the smile before turning to Bridgette, “so, Bridge, you gonna cheer me on?” He turned back to Gwen, “I won’t ask you, since you’re on the other team and stuff.”

“That’s weirdly thoughtful of you,” Gwen said to herself while Bridgette nodded, “you know it, Geoff! I’ll always cheer you on. But, I actually wanted to ask you something.”

“What?” Geoff asked, “I can’t promise I’ll know the answer, but I’ll try!”

However, before Bridgette had the chance to ask about the haiku, they reached Chris, Leshawna, and the meeting area. Leshawna smiled at Gwen and waved, but the goth pointedly looked away. She still wasn’t over the whole voting to keep Heather thing that happened last night. Leshawna sighed before turning back to Chris. Then, their host briefed the competing campers of what all this challenge contained.

“So, who wants first dibs?” Chris asked once he was done explaining everything.

“Oooh! Me! I want to!” Geoff exclaimed, “this is going to be so wicked!

Chris nodded, “okay, follow me.”

As Chris led Geoff to the bull pen, the party animal continued to express his excitement to Bridgette and Gwen, “Rodeo riding’s kinda like surfin’. Once you catch the lip, you just flow with the mojo!” He slid up to the ladder that would allow him moose access.

Bridgette smiled at him, loving that he used a surfing simile. And it provided the perfect connection! “Yeah! Flow! Kinda like the ancient art of Japanese haiku!”

Geoff’s eyebrows furrowed, and that’s when Bridgette knew, “what’s a haiku?” he asked before climbing up onto the moose. That was disappointing. However, before Bridgette had a chance to express that disappointment, Geoff commanded her attention again, “hey, Bridge, want to see that tat?” Then, he stood up on the moose’s back and pulled down his shorts and boxers, giving everyone a view of everything.

“Whoa!” Gwen cringed, but Bridgette just smiled fondly, “definitely not haiku-y.”

While most of the campers were at least mildly amused by Geoff’s presentation, the moose was not. There was someone standing on him doing dumb stuff. He charged for the gate, and Geoff was bucked off and thrown across the beach in two seconds flat, landing right in the dirty laundry pile.

The other Killer Bass watched this play out in horror. Courtney, who had her eyes buried in Duncan’s shoulder, expressed the confusion and disappointment that everyone felt, “is it over? I can’t believe that just happened. It did actually happen, right? I didn’t just imagine it? Can I look now?”

Duncan pushed her away slightly, “yeah, Princess, it’s safe. Come on.”

Pulling away slowly, Courtney risked a look to check her surroundings. The coast was clear, so she turned in Duncan’s arm to address her team, which was currently just herself, him, and DJ. Great.

They needed to have a team meeting, so she sent DJ to get Geoff, who was in the laundry pile, and Harold, who was next to the laundry pile. She made sure he knew that Geoff better have his pants on. Then, she scanned the crowd for Bridgette. She found her standing a few meters away with Gwen. Courtney just rolled her eyes. The two of them had been doing something all morning, but she didn’t care enough to find out what it was. She waved her over.

Bridgette saw this and held up a finger before turning back to Gwen. Courtney could wait a minute, and she wanted to finish this conversation.

“Okay, it wasn’t Trent or Geoff,” Gwen sighed.

“Yeaaah,” Bridgette shrugged, drawing out the word, “plus we kind of just assumed it was for us.” She pulled Gwen into a hug, “well, whoever it is we’re going to find out!”

Gwen, who wasn’t accustomed to having another person this close to her, shifted away slightly, “oh yeah we are. I think we’re in too deep to just leave it hanging. Who’s left?”

“DJ, Harold, or Duncan,” Bridgette listed. She paused for a second to think it over, “I don’t know which one of those it would be.” She pulled away from Gwen, “Courtney’s waving me over, so I should probably go. I also think it might be helpful to have some, well, help. Is it okay if I bring her in on this? She’s the smartest person on this island right now.”

“Sure, if you think she’ll be up for it,” Gwen agreed, even though she doubted Courtney would be. She didn’t seem like the kind of person who would care about this kind of stuff. “I’ll just be hanging out around here, come back whenever.”

Bridgette nodded and waved to her new friend before joining her team. Everyone one was there, including Harold, so chances were they were having a team check-in. She was proved right when she heard Courtney going in on Geoff about his dismal performance. Someone sounded stressed.

“I just don’t understand why you thought that would okay,” Courtney let out a long huff of air, “like, I’m trying to, and I can’t even comprehend why you would even want to do that in the first place. You guys have done so many brainless things during challenges, but this really, really takes the cake. Not only did you just potentially cost us a point, but you could have gotten really hurt. These challenges are unsafe enough as it is, and that made it so much more dangerous. We don’t need any injuries.” She pressed a hand to her forehead. “Just, I’m glad you’re okay. Don’t ever do anything like that ever again.”

“Yes, Court,” Geoff’s head was down, and his voice was low. He had enough sense not to argue. “I’m really sorry.”

Courtney sighed, “it’s fine, Geoff. Just think next time.” She dragged her hand down her face before turning to Bridgette, “and look who’s finally here. Are you still good to drive to Sea Doo? Or do we need Duncan to do it?”

Bridgette shook her head, “no, I’m good. I’ve got it. Don’t worry about it, Court.”

“Okay, I’m trusting you on this,” Courtney sighed again and turned to Harold. However, before she had a chance to check in with him, Chris announced, “and now, for the Screaming Gophers. Leshawna, let’s get!”

 The Killer Bass put a pin in their conversation as watched Leshawna hopefully crash harder than Geoff did. Luck was not on their side. She absolutely kicked ass, holding on to the moose for the required eight seconds and then some. Welp, that was unfortunate.

“So, we have a tie!” Chris exclaimed. He was loving this; it was always so much more fun when it was a close race. “Whoever wins the extreme Sea Doo waterski challenge wins invincibility! I’ll need Harold, Lindsay, and the drivers to meet me at the mud pit in an hour. Everyone else will have to stay at the beach. I’ll be providing updates through the PA.”

“Harold, can you do this?” Courtney asked, jumping right back into this, “because, as much as this pains me to say, it’s all up to you now. Please do not screw this up for us. This might be my, uh, our only chance at a real shower. I’ll be damned if we don’t get it.”

Harold groaned, “Courtney, I can do this. How many times do I have to tell you that I have mad skills? Whatever, don’t answer that. Can I go now?”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “yeah, sure, whatever. I don’t care. Just be back in time.”

Just be back in time? God, Harold couldn’t wait until the merge or for them to finally vote him out or something. Sometimes his team could be so dismissive of him, which he didn’t even get! Sure, he’d screwed up a few times, but never as hugely as Geoff or Bridgette or Duncan had. He was so ready to be done with them. He didn’t say bye before going back to the cabin.

“Okay, so I guess that’s it,” Courtney looked around the semicircle at her friends and alliance mates, “I know we can still win this. We have to. Anyway, I’m going to go be somewhere else right now. I need a moment.” She turned to the boy beside her, “Duncan? Do you want to…?”

Duncan nodded and rubbed her waist. He sincerely hoped that “I need a moment” was code for “let’s go find a nice, quiet place to make out for a bit.” Not only was that quickly becoming one of his favorite activities, but she was also in serious need of some stress relief. “Come on, Princess. Let’s find somewhere.”

Courtney gave him a soft smile, and he knew she was on the exact same page as him. Nice! Then, she turned back to her teammates and asked, “okay, so before we go, does anyone need anything?”

DJ and Geoff both shook their heads, but Bridgette raised a hand, “actually, if you don’t mind, I have something I needed some help with. It shouldn’t take long, I just have to show you something, and you can tell me what you think.”

“Yeah, Bridge, that’s fine,” Courtney sighed, trying not to let her disappointment seep through. She needed a break, but she couldn’t very well not help her friend. “What did you have to show me?”

“Oh, it’s just this little thing we found earlier,” Bridgette motioned for Courtney to follow her, so she did. Duncan, whose arm was still wrapped around her back, came along as well. He was much less competent than Courtney at hiding his disappointment, his scowl growing larger every moment they weren’t alone. Bridgette glanced at him before deciding it didn’t matter. It was just Duncan. She just hoped Gwen wouldn’t mind.

“Well, what is it?” Courtney asked again, “this might go faster if you explain on the way.”

Bridgette wasn’t offended that Courtney wanted this to be over quick. She got it; Courtney needed a moment to destress away from everyone. Or, well, almost everyone. “We found this note, Gwen and I, after breakfast. It was a haiku. A love haiku. Written to some girl from some guy.”

Courtney nodded, a little confused as to what this had to do with her. She waited for Bridgette to continue, but she didn’t. She was just looking at her expectantly. “Okay, and?”

“And, we both thought it was for us. I thought maybe Geoff wrote it for me, and she thought Trent wrote it for her.”

“You thought Geoff wrote you a haiku?” Courtney raised an eyebrow, “Doesn’t that seem, I don’t know, a little unlikely? Does Geoff even know what a haiku is?”

“No,” Bridgette sighed, “and I know, it was dumb. I just got caught up in it. I really wanted him to do something nice for me. But it doesn’t matter. Trent didn’t write the haiku either.”

Courtney thought this over for a second, “so now you have one haiku, and two boys it could be from.”

Bridgette nodded, “exactly! I just thought you could help us figure out how to figure it out. You’re good at getting stuff out of people. Well, there’s Gwen,” she pointed to the right, and Courtney followed that direction. Sure enough, the goth was standing a few meters away.

The trio approached a confused and slightly embarrassed Gwen. They brought a boy. A cool boy. A boy who was going to think she was so lame for caring about this kind of stuff. What was he even doing with them?

“Hey, Gwen, can I see the haiku?” Bridgette asked, and Gwen wordlessly handed it over. She kept her eyes glued to Duncan. Why was he there? She was so focused on his presence in general that she failed to realize just what his arm around Courtney meant.

“Okay, here’s the haiku,” Bridgette handed the note to Courtney before turning back to Gwen, “good news! Court said she’d help! I think I’ve caught her up on everything that’s happened so far. I hope you don’t mind!”

Gwen tore her eyes away from Duncan. Bridgette hadn’t mentioned him yet, so she wouldn’t either. “Oh, it’s, uh, fine. She was going to have to know anyway.” She turned to Courtney. “Hello, Courtney, how are you?”

“Fine, thank you,” Courtney managed to sound both polite and contemptuous in a way Gwen knew only she could. It was the standard she’d come to expect from the few conversations she’d had with the CIT. “So, the haiku thing? I’d like to speed this up if that’s okay, I have a few other things I need to do before the next challenge.”

“Oh, uh, yeah, no problem,” Gwen wasn’t intimidated. She wasn’t. She didn’t get intimidated, especially not by preppy, bitchy girls like Courtney. If she felt uneasy, that was her own business. “So, I guess, you, uh, already know about Trent.” She glanced at Duncan again, and the feeling of uneasiness grew tenfold. “I’m sorry, should I just pretend he’s not here or what?”

“I usually do,” Courtney sighed while Duncan looked offended that he was even mentioned, “I’m trying to, that’s for sure.”

Gwen looked at Bridgette, who just shrugged. Did she not think this was weird? “Okay, then. We found this haiku, and we both hoped it was for us.” She glanced at Duncan once again. She didn’t want him hearing about how much she wanted some dumb (incredibly sweet) love note. “Does he have to be here? I’m sorry, it’s just a little weird.”

Duncan rolled his eyes before looking at Courtney, “babe?”

Courtney looked at him as well, “just go. I know you don’t want to be here. Go to my cabin, I’ll catch up with you soon. Five minutes, promise.”

“Five minutes, then,” Duncan unwrapped his arm from around her, “I’m holding you to that.”

“Quicker you go, quicker I’ll be done,” Courtney smiled as nudged him in the directions of cabin. Then, he left.

Gwen let her mouth hang open as she watched this play out. Were Duncan and Courtney a couple? They were acting awfully couple-like, but, as far as she knew, Courtney wasn’t into him like he was her. She sent Brigette a questioning look, but the surfer just rolled her eyes at the pair. The couple, apparently.

After Duncan was out of view, Courtney turned back to Bridgette and Gwen, “okay, you can talk freely now. But, as you know, Bridgette told us everything. You don’t have to resay it. Just tell me what you need help with.”

Gwen nodded but did not do as Courtney asked. Instead, before she could stop herself, she blurted, “are you and Duncan together?”

“I fail to see how that’s important,” Courtney crossed her arms over her chest, “Bridgette, I’m sorry, could you just get to the point, please?”

“Yeah, Court, sure,” Bridgette laughed as Gwen looked down at the ground. She was intimidated. By Courtney. “like you said earlier, we have one haiku and two, er, three boys it could be from. We really want to know, but we don’t know how to find out.”

Courtney let this run through her mind a few times. The solution she thought up was rather simple, but there was no way they missed that. “First of all, I’m going to tell you now Duncan didn’t write that haiku for me, nor would I have wanted him to, so turn that three back into a two. Second of all, just ask?”

Just ask. She made it seem so easy. Bridgette rolled her eyes, “obviously, but who? And what do I say?”

Courtney sighed before explaining what could only be the most obvious thing in the world. Ask DJ, Bridgette’s good friend. If he said yes, mystery solved, if he said no, mystery still solved. If it was DJ, just ask who he wrote it for, and, if it wasn’t, ask around the gopher girls if any them had been getting haikus recently.

Meanwhile, Duncan was making himself comfortable in Courtney’s bed. It felt weird being in her cabin without her, he decided, wrong even. They hadn’t had the chance to be alone-alone all day, and he wanted her here next to him. Or on top of him, whichever.

The haiku thing was the stupidest shit he’d heard all summer, and Duncan couldn’t believe that was what was keeping her away. It didn’t even have anything to do with her! It wasn’t her fault Gwen and Bridgette weren’t smart enough to figure it out on their own, and, if it kept her longer than the five minutes she’d promised, he was going to be more pissed than he already was. Not at Courtney obviously, but at everything else surrounding it.

Thankfully, it didn’t even take the five minutes for the cabin door to open, and Courtney to step inside. Duncan pushed himself up, resting his back against the wall and watched as she slipped off her shoes next to his and walked over to her bed. She looked just about as done with everything as he was.

“Hi,” Courtney sighed, sitting down next to him. She picked up her alarm clock and set a thirty minute timer. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine,” Duncan wrapped his arm around her shoulders, “am I just an asshole, or was that not the dumbest shit ever?”

Courtney laughed, the sound filling the cabin, “most of the time you are, but you’re right. It was.” She raised herself to her knees and smiled down at him. “But let’s not talk about that right now.”

Then, she swung a leg across his body and sat down in his lap. She was facing him, and her legs were on either side of him. Her hands were curled around his upper arms, almost as if she was keeping him in place. One of his arms wrapped around her lower back, actually keeping her in place, and his other hand was creeping up towards the back of her head.

“Sorry,” Courtney whispered, and Duncan didn’t know why she was apologizing. She was on top of him. It didn’t get much better than that. “I just, I need to turn my brain off for a while.”

Duncan smirked, knowing exactly what was about to go down. Her eyes were screaming at him to kiss her. “Let me help you with that, baby.”

Courtney let out a muffled sound from the back of her throat that managed to be both cute and unbelievably hot before attaching her lips to his. She was taking full control, biting down on his lower lip and taking advantage of the “fuck, Court,” he moaned out by sticking her tongue into his mouth. Her tongue swept across the roots of his mouth before settling on his tongue ring. It had only been two days since their first kiss, but he already knew she loved playing with it.

This particular kiss went on for several minutes, Courtney changing the angle as she deemed necessary. It was the most assertive she had been with him since this thing started, and he wasn’t ashamed to say it turned him on a little. She was always hot, but this was some next level shit.

Courtney finally pulled away, giving him a shy look as she did so. Duncan didn’t understand that. What did she have to be shy about? Her tongue was just in his mouth. “Shit, babe, where did you learn to kiss like that? That was, fuck, Court.”

“Sorry,” Courtney said again, much to Duncan’s confusion, “I just really needed to do that.”

“Don’t ever apologize for kissing me, Court. You can do that any time,” Duncan, whose hand was currently knotted up in her hair, rubbed her head slightly. That elicited another soft moan from her. “Fuck, you’re so hot.”

Courtney looked down between their bodies before looking back at him, “yeah?” He nodded. “Then I guess you would mind kissing  _me_  now, would you?”

“Not at all,” Duncan breathed as he pulled her back to him, “come here.” Then, he closed the distance between them, pressing soft kisses along her jawline before finding her mouth.

Back at the beach, Bridgette and Gwen had made some headway with the haiku. Following Courtney’s suggestion, Bridgette had asked DJ if he was maybe into any girls or had written any poetry recently. His answer was a confused yet resounding no, meaning it had to be Harold. Not wanting to ask any of her teammates about it, Gwen mentioned that sometimes Leshawna hung out with Harold. They decided that was good enough for now, that Harold wrote the haiku probably for Leshawna, and that they’d confirm it later.

Now that the mystery was solved, the pair parted ways. Gwen wanted to check on Trent in the medical tent, and Bridgette didn’t think that she should be part of that. Instead, she found DJ on the dock and answered his questions about her questions. Much like everyone else, he couldn’t believe Bridgette thought Geoff wrote her a haiku. She didn’t think she would ever live that down.

Before long, it came time for the final challenge to start. Bridgette bid him goodbye and found Chris. Heather was also there, so she correctly assumed she was the gophers’ driver. That could be tricky for Harold, and Bridgette hoped she didn’t have anything too bad up her sleeve. Lindsay and Harold quickly joined them, both sporting their most revealing swimwear, and Chris walked them to the mud pit.

After explaining the finer details of the challenge and declaring the Killer Bass the first ones up, Chris got Heather and Harold set up on the Sea Doo and water skis, respectively. While they ran the course, Bridgette talked some with Lindsay, neither paying too much attention to the challenge.

“That bikini looks really nice on you, you know,” Bridgette complimented, “you look great in green.”

“Thanks, Bridge!” Lindsay gave the surfer her brightest smile, “I’ve been wanting to wear it for so long! I’m so glad I get to waterski, even if it is in the mud. I’m really good at it.”

Bridgette laughed, “you’re welcome. And I’m a really good Sea Doo driver, I have a lot of practice.”

“’Cos you’re a lifeguard?” Lindsay asked, to which Bridgette nodded, “that’s so cool! And it’s cool that you’re my driver. I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else.”

“Thanks for saying that,” Bridgette laughed, “you almost got Duncan, but I made sure that didn’t happen.”

“Really? Thank God,” Lindsay wiped away imaginary sweat from her forehead, “can I tell you a secret? I’m a little scared of him. I would had been so scared if he was my driver.”

Bridgette shook her head fondly, “you’re scared of Duncan? Linds, he’s all bark. But I have to agree. I wouldn’t trust him behind the whe–”

Then, she was interrupted by a crash, followed by a loud scream. Bridgette and Lindsay shared a curious look before looking around for the source. It didn’t take then long to find it. Heather was sitting on the Sea Doo, topless. Her top hung off a tree branch. Harold was smashed against a rock, a goofy grin on his face. He didn’t even look upset that he just probably lost his team the challenge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's part one! I hope you liked it! Part two should be out in around two weeks. A draft of it is done, but there's still some editing I need to do. It shouldn't take me the whole two weeks, but I want to get started on Brunch of Disgustingness before I put it out. That one should be a lot of fun, I'm really excited for it.
> 
> As always, if you enjoyed it please leave a kudos or a comment! I would really appreciate it!


	10. All Kinds of Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'll remember, we ended on Heather and Harold crashing during the x-treme water skiing challenge. Hope you enjoy part two of X-Treme Torture!

Then, she was interrupted by a crash, followed by a loud scream. Bridgette and Lindsay shared a curious look before looking around for the source. It didn’t take then long to find it. Heather was sitting on the Sea Doo, topless. Her top hung off a tree branch. Harold was smashed against a rock, a goofy grin on his face. He didn’t even look upset that he just probably lost his team the challenge.

“Oh, my God!” Lindsay exclaimed before running towards her friend, who had magically found the finish line, “what happened? Are you okay?”

Heather glared, covering her breasts with her arms, “does it look like I’m okay, Lindsay? NO! This is humiliating! Don’t just stand there, help me!”

Lindsay looked to Bridgette then back at Heather, “how? I have to do the challenge!”

“I don’t know, Lindsay,” Heather yelled, “figure something out! I can’t go back there with no top on!”

Tears were starting to leak out of Lindsay’s eyes, “please don’t yell at me. I know you can’t, I just don’t know what to do. I can’t always help you.”

Heather gasped “you can’t always help me? Lindsay, remember who made you! Give me your top or something!”

Lindsay’s tears were now falling steadily, “no! I have to do the challenge. I don’t want everyone to see my breasts.”

“Hey, maybe let’s all calm down some?” Bridgette walked over to the gopher girls and placed a hand on each of their shoulders. Lindsay gave her a grateful smile, but Heather just glared. “Heather, I know this must be very stressful for you, but all this anger isn’t helping. If you’ll take it, I think I have a solution for you.”

“And what would that be, blonde one?” Heather hissed, “to just visualize a top, and one will appear? To hold my head high and not listen to anyone else? I don’t need your hippie shit.”

Bridgette sighed and removed her hands from their shoulders before reaching under her sweatshirt and pulling off her black tank top, “I was thinking something more like this. It’s yours if you want it.” She held the shirt out for Heather.

“Is this a joke?” Heather asked, eying the top suspiciously, “as if you’d help me. I’ve been nothing but terrible to you all summer!”

“That’s true, you have been, but that doesn’t matter right now. You’re Lindsay’s friend, but, even if you weren’t, I’d still help. I can’t imagine how you’re feeling right now, and I wouldn’t ever want to be in the same position. Girls help girls, especially with things like this.”

Heather carefully removed one arm from her chest and quickly grabbed the top, pulling it over her head, “don’t think this means I owe you, blonde one. I didn’t ask for this.”

Bridgette laughed. She had expected nothing less from her. “I know, think of this as a gift. I won’t ask for anything in return. I’m just going to leave you two here, I think I should probably check on Harold.”

Then, Bridgette left a still crying Lindsay and newly clothed Heather. As she walked away, she heard Heather demand Lindsay to get her head in the game and stop crying like a little bitch. While the girls had been dealing with that, Harold had come to his senses. He was now standing to the side of the mud pit with a towel wrapped around him, looking rather embarrassed. He couldn’t believe he let himself get distracted by something so physical.

“Are you okay?” Bridgette asked, “are you hurt?”

Harold shook his head, “I am fine physically but not emotionally or mentally. I let you down, and it will result in my demise in the game. I just hope that Courtney won’t be too angry about the shower.”

Bridgette grimaced, “I’m sorry, Harold.” She was apologizing for a whole range of things, and he knew this. For what happened, for voting him out later tonight, and for the wrath he was likely to endure at the hands of Courtney for losing them the shower.

“It’s okay. It’s no one’s fault but my own,” Harold placed a hand over his heart, “I let myself get distracted, and that’s on me. I almost had it.”

“Still, I’m sorry. I wish things could have gone differently,” Bridgette said before leaving him and finding Chris and the Sea Doo. Every Sea Doo was different, and she wanted to get acquainted with this one before she had to drive it.

Bridgette mounted the Sea Doo and started messing around with the controls. This one was a basic model, go figure, and she already knew all the basics. She probably wouldn’t have to do anything crazy, so she just waited for her turn to start.

Soon enough, Lindsay joined her and strapped herself into the water skis. Her eyes were dry as she shouted, “I just wanted to tell you that I’m going to try really hard. I really want to win this shower.”

Bridgette laughed, “I know, Linds, just give it your best shot. And I just wanted to tell you that I’m going to try really hard to make this hard for you. Courtney really wants to win this shower, and so do I a little. And Geoff.”

“Good,” Lindsay smiled, “then it’s a fair fight.” Then, Chris yelled at them to start.

Meanwhile, the rest of the campers, excluding Trent, were gathered around the PA system. The Killer Bass were in poor spirits after their win was ripped away from them, each one wondering what could have happened that made Harold drop the flags so suddenly. The Screaming Gophers were starting to get excited. Sure, they didn’t have the win yet, but, as long as Lindsay knew what she was doing, they would soon. Among both teams, no one doubted that Heather did something underhanded to cause all this.

Chris started commentating on Lindsay’s ride, and the Killer Bass hand no choice but to listen as she collected flag after flag. The likelihood of the same thing happening to Lindsay as Harold was low, and they all knew this.

Both of Courtney’s hands were clutching Duncan’s left shoulder, and her grip was getting tighter with each flag Lindsay picked up, “no, no, Bridgette, come on, I know you can figure something out, no, please,” she whispered.

Geoff, who could feel the dirty laundry stink radiating off him, was much more vocal with his pleas for success, “Come on, Bridge, don’t let her cross! Win us this shower!” He shouted. It was not lost on anyone that he didn’t even care about “that dumb shower” at the beginning of the day and was now the loudest supporter.

“ _And Lindsay has picked up her fifth and final flag_!” Chris announced, “ _now will she be able to cross the finish line with all of them?_ ”

“No, please, no, Bridgette, do something,” Courtney pleaded, resting her forehead on her hands, “please.”

No such luck. A few seconds later, Chris exclaimed, “ _and she crosses the finish line! Gophers win! Gophers, stick around, and I’ll tell you about the sweet shower! Bass, you’re free to go! Maybe you can decide who you’re sending home tonight! Lunch will be in twenty minute in the dining hall!_ ”

The campers did as Chris requested, the Killer Bass heading back to their cabin to decompress before lunch. They were all understandably disappointed in today’s loss, no one more so than Courtney. She was silent as they walked back to their cabin, but the guys were all anxiously awaiting her outburst. Quiet Courtney was scary.

It never came, and, when they got to the cabin, she told them she was fine and that she’d see them at lunch. That she wanted to be alone for a minute before Bridgette got back. They knew better than to argue with her, even if they didn’t believe her, so they reluctantly did as she asked. Not a minute later, they heard muffled screaming from the other side of the wall, and they collectively let out a sigh of relief. She was fine.

Forty minutes later, the Killer Bass were finishing up their lunches and planning out the rest of their day. There were still seven hours until the marshmallow ceremony, so it was sure to be a slow afternoon. Harold was missing from the table as he was trying to avoid his teammates the best he could before he was voted out tonight. The five remaining freely discussed voting him out but had decided they still needed to have an alliance meeting to figure out a few other things. They were now trying to find a time that worked for everyone.

“I really don’t want to do it now,” Courtney sighed, “I’m really not in the best headspace to be thinking about all that stuff right now, and I know we probably all have things we want to do this afternoon. We should probably do it before dinner, though. It’s a little after noon now, so let’s say four-ish? Does that work for everyone?”

“Works for me,” “Yeah, babe,” “As long as I get a shower,” “Mhmmm,” were her teammates replies. Perfect.

Courtney smiled weakly at them, “great. I think it’ll be easiest to just meet in our half of the cabin; Bridgette is that okay?”  Bridgette nodded. “Okay, then. 4:00, our cabin. I guess I’ll see you all then.” She took a deep breath before addressing Bridgette specifically, “what are your plans for this afternoon? I really just want to take a nap for a bit, but if you wanted to hang out in the cabin then I can find something else to do.”

Bridgette shrugged, “I’ll figure something out. Use the cabin, I don’t mind.”

“If you’re sure you’re okay with it. And it’s obviously not off limits, I can’t kick you out of it, so if at any point you want to come back to the cabin and it to not be dark or quiet, you can wake me up. It’s well within your rights.”

Bridgette laughed, “I’m sure. It’s yours until the meeting.”

Courtney nodded as she gathered her trash, “thanks.” She stood up. “I’m going now. I’ll see you all later.” Then, she left. Duncan quickly did the same and rushed after her.

Not long after exiting the dining hall, Courtney heard a set of familiar footsteps behind her. Duncan. She supposed she should had expected this and stopped to wait for him. He wouldn’t change her mind about wanting to take this nap, but he could at least walk her to the cabin.

“You want some company, Court?” Duncan asked as he grabbed her hand. He didn’t stop walking, so Courtney was pulled along briefly before adjusting to his speed, which was faster than normal.

Courtney glanced at him suspiciously, “company for what?”

Duncan laughed, brushing her hand with his thumb, “what do you think? I’m pretty tired, too. Could go for a nap.”

“Oh,” Courtney hadn’t expected that from him. She had expected him to try to change her mind about the nap and get her to do something else. This was a nice surprise. “Sure. But, Duncan, I mean it when I say I want to take a nap. That’s all this is. It’s not going to turn into anything else, and it’s not going to be very exciting. Just sleep.”

“Just sleep,” Duncan agreed with a laugh, “said I was tired, too, right? You heard that? Maybe I just want to spend some time with my girlfriend, ever thought of that? I don’t really care what we do, and a nap wouldn’t suck.”

Despite still feeling completely upset due to losing the challenge and, more importantly, the shower, Courtney could feel a smile coming on. She loved it when he would casually say sweet things to her or mention their bond without making it a whole big thing. It was one of her favorite things about him.

They reached the cabin porch, and Courtney faced him, “Wait here. I want to change into something else.”

Duncan nodded, “not a bad idea, think I’ll do that to. I’ll just knock after?”

“Yeah,” Courtney dropped his hand. Then, the two went into their respective halves of the cabin on a mission to find something a little more comfortable to sleep in.

It didn’t even take Duncan a minute to kick off his shoes, shed his shirt, and unfasten his dog collar before searching his drawer for some sweatpants. Today was turning out great, regardless of losing the challenge. That didn’t matter at all when there was an easy vote off, and the most amazing girl he knew was finally, officially his girlfriend. After finding the right pair, he traded his jean shorts for sweatpants and went to knock on Courtney’s door.

She didn’t open it but shouted, “come in,” so he did. The lights were already out, but there was enough sun shining through the windows for him to take her in. Courtney was undoing the covers on her bed and wearing a soft pink tank top and a matching pair of pajama shorts. The light color looked fantastic against her brown skin.

Duncan grinned and walked the distance between them. She was doing something with the pillows, so he sat down on her unmade bed, “hi.”

Courtney dropped the pillow and turned to face him, returning his grin, “hi.” She shuffled over to him and let herself be caught by him. They were both wearing less clothes than they normally did, and Courtney had to admit that the increased skin to skin contact felt great. It almost made her want to scrap the whole nap thing and take advantage of the uninterrupted several hours Brigette had promised. Almost. Sighing, she placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed. Not hard enough to actually get him down but enough for him to know she wanted him to.

“Okay, Princess,” Duncan laughed as he plopped down on his back, pulling Courtney with him as he went under the covers. She smiled as she adjusted her position. She laid her head on his chest, her hand going slightly under her cheek. His arm curled around her, and his hand played with the ends of her hair. “I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen you in anything that wasn’t on the grayscale.”

“My normal pants are green,” she rolled her eyes even though she knew he couldn’t see her. She liked to imagine he knew what she was doing when he let out another laugh. “This is the first time I’ve ever seen you without that ridiculous dog collar.”

Duncan laughed again, “that thing’s awesome, okay. It’s just uncomfortable as Hell to sleep in. And they’re olive green, babe. Still a neutral color. The pink looks good on you.”

Courtney smiled against his chest, “thanks. But you wear black all the time, too. You’re not really one to talk.”

“Guess not,” Duncan stroked the side of her neck through her hair.

That was all that was said on matter, and the couple settled into a comfortable silence. The hand under Courtney’s cheek migrated to Duncan’s middle, and she traced lines across his stomach until she fell asleep. He continued messing with her hair. Then, around thirty minutes later, they were both out.

In the outside world, Bridgette was sitting at one of the picnic tables with Gwen. All of their teammates were busy doing other things, (showering and napping, mostly) so they decided to spend some of the afternoon outside talking about different things that were going on around camp.

They flitted through topics quickly, never spending too long on one thing. Both of them had shared stories about Geoff and Trent and different things that had gone wrong during challenges. Bridgette was telling Gwen all about how she burned down the bass’ tent during the camping challenge when Lindsay stopped by their table. She was holding the shirt Bridgette had lent Heather earlier.

Gwen sent the new blonde an annoyed look, but Bridgette smiled warmly at her, “hi, Lindsay, good job on the waterskiing earlier. I know I already told you, but you did great.”

“You’re welcome, again,” Lindsay returned the smile, “I’m bringing you your shirt back.” She held the tank top out for Bridgette. “Maybe it didn’t seem like it, but Heather is really grateful. Thanks for saving the day!”

“Oh, it was no problem!” Bridgette took the shirt, “Thanks for bringing it back. So, how was the shower?”

Lindsay’s face filled with awe, “Bridge, it was so good. The water was so hot! I’m sorry you didn’t get to win it.”

Bridgette waved a hand, “oh, it’s fine, I’ll get over it. I’m just glad it went to someone who wanted it so badly.”

“How’s Court doing, by the way?” Lindsay asked, placing a hand on Bridgette’s shoulder, “I know you said she really wanted it. I’d be super devastated if we didn’t win.”

Bridgette laughed, “she is a little upset, but she’s fine. She’s taking a nap right now which is probably the best we could had hoped for. I think Duncan’s with her. She’ll be fine.”

“Good,” Lindsay smiled, “I know earlier I said I was scared of him or whatever, but, like, I love him and Court together! I saw them kiss this morning, and I’m just so obsessed. They’re so cute. You don’t understand.”

“I have a pretty good idea,” Bridgette laughed again, “I love them together, too. They’re good for each other.”

“Yeah they are,” Lindsay took her hand back and was about to say something else when Gwen joined the conversation.

Normally, Gwen didn’t care at all about what Lindsay talked about, but this was something she was actually interested in. She’d been curious about Duncan and Courtney since that morning during the challenge, and now seemed like the perfect time to find out more. “So, Duncan and Courtney? They actually like each other?”

Gwen was met with two blank stares. Lindsay blinked before giving Bridgette a questioning look, to which she just shrugged. “Uh, yeah they like each other, silly. They’re a couple!”

“I got that, I think, but it doesn’t make any sense to me,” Gwen said, “they don’t seem like they’d like each other.”

“And why’s that?” Bridgette asked, her voice cooler than it had been.

Gwen shrugged, “they just don’t have a lot in common. I don’t know what a guy like a Duncan would see in a girl like _that_. I get that they’re together, but are we sure it’s not just physical?”

Bridgette crossed her arms over her stomach. She didn’t like the way Gwen obviously thought Courtney wasn’t, like, good enough or something for Duncan. “We’re sure. Have you actually had a conversation with either of them? Because they have a lot more in common that you think. Like a scary amount.”

“Well, no,” Gwen looked down at the table, “I mean, I’ve talked to her a few times but never him. I’ve seen them, though, separately. She’s not the kind of girl I thought he’d be into. She’s, well, you know.”

There it was again. The idea that Courtney was the lesser one. Bridgette’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know. Tell me.”

Gwen shrugged again, looking up at Lindsay for some help. She did not offer any but seemed just as curious as Bridgette was. Sighing, she said, “well, he’s cool and stuff, and she’s kind of, well, a tight-ass. She’s one of those preppy, bitchy girls, and he doesn’t seem like he’d be into that type.”

“But Court’s, like, so nice? Totally not bitchy at all,” Lindsay said, a bit confused, while Bridgette gasped, “‘preppy, bitchy girl?’ You don’t even know her. I think that’s a bit unfair. Remember, Courtney’s my best friend here.”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Gwen tried. Obviously, she had said the wrong thing. “I just meant, well, she’s a type. And he’s a type. They’re different types.”

“Maybe we just shouldn’t talk about this anymore,” Bridgette clipped, placing her hand on her tank top and gripping it hard. It took a lot to offend her, but Gwen had found it. She didn’t like it when people didn’t like her friends (or anyone) for no legitimate reason. She tried not to hold Gwen’s bias against her.

Gwen nodded, “maybe. I’m sorry. I’m sure they’re great. I’m sure she’s great. Sometimes I think maybe I shouldn’t talk so much.”

“We could all probably stand not to talk so much,” Bridgette turned to Lindsay, “once again, thanks for returning my shirt. Was there anything else you needed? Because you’re more than welcome to stay and chat. All my teammates are napping, apparently, except for Geoff, who’s showering, so I’m hanging out with the gophers.”

“No, that was all!” Lindsay bounced on her heels, “I actually have to get back to the cabin, but I’ll see you later? If you don’t get voted out?” Then, she erupted into giggles.

Knowing that the other blonde was joking, Bridgette joined in with the giggling, “here’s hoping I’m safe tonight! See you later, Linds.”

Lindsay waved to the pair before leaving. Once she was gone Gwen sent Bridgette an apologetic look, “listen, I am sorry about what I said. I’ve just known some girls like her in the past, and I can’t say I’m the biggest fan. I’m sure there’s a lot of stuff to like about her.”

Though she didn’t want to, Bridgette smiled, “don’t worry about it. Let’s talk about something more interesting than my teammates. Like the haiku! Do we really think Harold wrote it for Leshawna?”

“It’s the only thing that makes any sense,” Gwen said, “I’d ask her, but we’re not speaking at the moment.”

“What? Why?” Bridgette asked, forgetting about her previous animosity towards her. She knew Gwen and Leshawna were friends. Lindsay had mentioned it several times, and she’d seen them together on multiple occasions. Gwen was clearly distressed, and Bridgette wanted to offer any help she could.

Gwen crossed her arms, “Heather. What else? She’s the cause for all our team’s problems.”

Bridgette reached an arm across the table and grabbed Gwen’s hand, “what did she do? If you don’t mind talking about it, I mean.”

“I guess if you want to listen,” Gwen shrugged, “it’s nothing really that big. We just finally had the chance to vote Heather out last night, and Leshawna ruined it by voting with Heather instead. She let herself get manipulated by the she-devil.”

“Did she tell you why?” Bridgette asked, dropping Gwen’s hand, “I’m sure there was a reason she did that. This is a game for $100,000, after all.”

“She tried, but I kind of shut her down,” Gwen crossed her arms over her stomach, “she said it was something about needing Heather after the merge to break up the bass if any of us wanted a fighting chance. She said it was for us, but I don’t think keeping Heather around will help anything. She just let Heather get to her. We already had a plan!”

Bridgette had to clench her jaw to keep from letting out a verbal reaction. Did Gwen really just tell her she had a plan for breaking up the bass? AKA her team? Did she not realize that she was one of those bass or think she wouldn’t mind? Bridgette had to play this carefully. The more Gwen spilled, the more she would have for their alliance meeting later.

She decided on an indirect approach, “you think Leshawna let Heather get to her? I know that I don’t really know her or anything, but that doesn’t seem right. They don’t like each other very much. Surely it must have been more than just that.”

Gwen sighed, “yeah, she said she talked to Harold about you, and he encouraged her to keep Heather. He apparently told her all kinds of stuff.”

“He did?!” Bridgette asked, trying to keep the panic out of her voice. That could screw them after the merge.

“Yeah,” Gwen nodded, “but it’s not like we needed that information. We already know everything we need to. We already had a plan.”

It was time to see if she could get away with this. Bridgette took a deep breath and looked Gwen in the eyes, “a plan? For what?”

“Oh, just about who we were going to vote off first after the merge,” Gwen shrugged, and Bridgette couldn’t believe that just worked, “and we don’t need Heather for it. We just need to get a group together and show them just who’s going to win this game if we don’t vote her out.”

“Her?” Bridgette repeated, letting this run through her mind. While Gwen was admitting stuff she probably shouldn’t, there was no way she would tell Bridgette that she wanted to vote her out. It wasn’t about herself or Leshawna either, and she doubted that it was Lindsay. That only left Heather and Courtney, and Bridgette was leaning towards it being her own teammate and best friend. “Her who?”

Still not realizing, Gwen started, “Cour–” then, then she realized. Her eyes widened and she shook her head, “no one! Nothing! There is no plan! I’m just talking out of my ass. Don’t worry about it. Like I said, I should just talk less! Like never.”

“Uh-huh, right, no one. I know her,” Bridgette said as Gwen stood up.

“I think I should probably go check on Trent now!” Gwen backed away from the table, “it was, uh, nice hanging out with you today. Later!” Then, without waiting for a response, she turned and almost ran towards the medical tent.

Bridgette smiled to herself, not caring that she was left alone. Now she had something to report, and it was something good. She wouldn’t even feel a little bad about selling out her new friend she made today to her best friend since about day four. Especially since Gwen made it clear she wasn’t a big Courtney fan. She stood up from the table and searched around for something else to do.

She found Geoff walking across camp, his hair still wet from a shower. It had been about an hour since lunch ended, and she assumed he spent most of it in the shower, trying to wash away the dirty laundry smell. Bridgette smiled, he looked like he could use some company. After walking over to him, she found out that he could. The two settled on the beach and talked about unimportant things. While not completely gone, the dirty laundry smell had decreased significantly, and it didn’t take Bridgette long to get used to it, especially with the fresh air around them.

When it was almost four, Bridgette and Geoff went back to the cabin. They found DJ sitting on the steps, and the lights were still off in the girls’ side.

“What’s up, Deej?” Geoff asked, running up to his friend and offering him a hand, “what’re you sitting out here for? Isn’t it time for our meeting?”

“Nothing much, man,” DJ accepted the hand, hitting it once, “and yeah, I was just waiting for y’all. It’s still dark in there, and I know Dunc’s in there, too. Didn’t want to interrupt anything.”

Bridgette laughed. Of course DJ was scared to even knock on the door in fear that they might be doing anything that wasn’t what normal friends did. “You want me to go check?”

DJ flashed Bridgette a bright smile, “yeah, if you don’t mind.”

Bridgette shook her head and walked up the steps, “I don’t. You two wait here. I’ll get you in a minute.” Then, she went inside her cabin.

Once she opened the door, she heard Courtney whispering something to Duncan, but she couldn’t make out what it was. Not knowing if they heard the door open or if they were too busy with each other, Bridgette knocked on the wall to get their attention. Right away, she heard Courtney shuffle in her bed before asking, “Bridge, is that you?”

“Yeah, Court. You up?” Bridgette stood in the doorway, not wanting to go all the way into the cabin until she knew what exactly was going on.

“Yes, we are, sorry. Neither of us felt like getting up to turn the light back on. You can if you want.”

Bridgette did want. She reached her arm over to the light switch and flipped it up. After her eyes readjusted, she saw Courtney sitting in her bed with her back against the wall, and Duncan lying beside her, propped up on his elbow with a hand on her thigh. He wasn’t wearing a shirt. Maybe DJ was right, maybe they were interrupting something.

“We’re still having the meeting at four, right?” Bridgette asked.

“Yes, yes, we were just waiting for you,” Courtney picked up Duncan’s hand and removed it from her thigh, “he was actually just about to go put a shirt on,” she nudged him on the shoulder, “where are DJ and Geoff?”

“I don’t wanna put a shirt on, babe,” Duncan whined while Bridgette just pointed a thumb towards the door, “sitting on the porch. I don’t know how long DJ’s been out there, but he was pretty scared of walking in on something.”

Courtney addressed Bridgette first, “while I appreciate the gesture, he really had nothing to worry about. They can come in.” Then, she turned her attention back to her boyfriend, “oh well, you’re going to do it anyway. We’re not going to have a meeting with you sitting here shirtless. No one wants that.”

“Pretty sure you do,” Duncan smirked as he climbed over Courtney and out of the bed, “bet you’re just worried you’ll be distracted the entire time. I get it, Court, I look good.”

“Jesus, Duncan, just go,” Courtney rolled her eyes, “and tell DJ and Geoff to come in here.” She turned back to Bridgette. “I am so sorry about him. He apparently doesn’t understand common decency today.”

Bridgette laughed as Duncan left, “I don’t mind. How was your nap? Did you actually get any sleeping done?”

Courtney rolled her eyes again as she got out of bed, “as a matter of fact, yes. A nice three hours of it.”

The door opened again, and this time DJ and Geoff came in. While Bridgette had grown used to the smell, Courtney hadn’t had the chance. She paused making her bed and turned, her nose scrunched up, “how do you still smell? I thought you were taking a shower?”

“I did,” Geoff sighed, “for like an hour. And then I was outside for the rest of that time. Is it still that bad?”

“Yes,” Courtney walked over to her dresser and picked up her perfume bottle, “go spray yourself with this, please. I really don’t want you stinking up our cabin.” She tossed the bottle to Geoff, who caught it easily. Then, because she was there, she pulled a black sweater out of her drawer and pulled it on over her tank top.

Geoff saluted her, “anything for you, Court. Be back in a sec.” Then, he stepped onto the porch.

Courtney went back to making her bed. When she finished, she crawled back into it and sat facing the opposite bed, “Bridge, DJ, let’s do this over here. You can pull that crate ov–” she started but was interrupted by the door opening once again.

“Why’s Geoff asking me to smell him?” Duncan asked as he walked in. He was wearing a red shirt, and Courtney smiled to herself. A color that wasn’t black. It suited him well. “Because I never signed up for that.” He walked over to Courtney’s bed and took a seat next to her.

Courtney shrugged, but, before she could answer, Geoff came back in, “is it better?”

Not noticing a particularly bad scent, Courtney nodded, “yes, thank you. You can just put the perfume back on my dresser and sit anywhere.”

Geoff obliged, sitting on the floor with his back resting on Bridgette’s bed. Then, DJ pulled the crate over to the foot of Bridgette’s bed, and Bridgette sat down on the edge of her bed.

“Great, so I assume we all had a nice few hours. Are we ready to start?” Courtney opened. Her teammates all hummed their agreement, so she just went for it. “Okay, so Harold’s out tonight, that’s easy, but we’ve come to a point where we actually have to worry about what’s coming next. Hopefully the teams merge soon soon, but if it not…” She grimaced before looking at Duncan. He nodded, knowing she wanted him to talk.

Duncan grabbed Courtney’s hand and pulled it into his lap, “we were talking earlier. There are only five of us left after tonight. The whole alliance. Doesn’t give us much room for error if there’s no merge –” “– which there should be!” “– which there should be. If not, we have to win the next however many challenges until there is a merge.”

Courtney nodded before taking over again, “if we do lose, it could be tricky. We’d have to vote out someone in this room, and I don’t think any of us want to do that yet.” She sighed and shook her head. “I know that each of us has an order of who is most important to them. Who they most want to get rid of and who they least want to get rid of. Even if you say you don’t, you do. I do, Duncan does, you three do, too. We don’t need to share these lists. No one needs to know how much their alliance mate and friend values them in the game. We don’t need to worry about that right now. We’ll worry about it if it comes down to that, but no sooner.

“Something that is worth worrying about, however, is how the first vote is going to go if there is a merge. If it’s after tonight, there will be five bass and five gophers. In theory, it should be us against them, but I don’t think that’s going to be the case. Bridgette and I have spent a lot of time with Lindsay, and we think we’d be able to get us to vote with us, which would make it six against four. We’d only need her for one vote, but I like her enough to let her stick around for longer. The question is, who do we target? The floor is open.”

Taking everything in, Bridgette couldn’t help but be alarmed. This was a lot more than she expected, and it was likely Courtney and Duncan already had everything all planned out, including which of their own they’d try to send out. That wasn’t a scary thought at all. She sent a look to DJ and Geoff to see what they thought, but they weren’t paying any attention. Typical. She silently waited for Courtney or Duncan to share their plan.

After a full minute of silence, Courtney sighed and squeezed Duncan’s hand, causing him to look at her. She jerked her head towards their teammates and mouthed at him “ _say something_.” He nodded and looked back at the other teens, “so, Court and I thought it’d be useful to keep Heather around. We know she sucks, but she’ll always be a bigger target than us, if somehow something goes wrong. The gophers aren’t united because of her, and none of her tricks would ever work on us. We’d want Lindsay still, so that only leaves Gwen, Trent, or Leshawna.”

“Nothing’s been decided yet!” Courtney added, “we still don’t know who the best choice between the three would be or if it really matters. Does anyone know anything about any of them that could help? We don’t need to make the decision right now, of course, but it’d be nice to know what we’re working with.”

Bridgette smiled; she knew this one! It was time to share what Gwen had told her. “Oh! I was hanging out with Gwen today! She’s super pissed at Leshawna because didn’t vote out Heather last night. They’re not talking.”

Courtney returned the smile, “really? That’s fantastic for us. Did she say why?”

Bridgette nodded, “oh yeah, she told me everything. Leshawna voted to keep Heather last night even though they had the votes to get her out. The two of them and Trent seem to have been working together, but maybe not anymore. Gwen’s mad because they already had a plan to vote you out after the merge, and she thinks Leshawna is trying to change it. She thinks she let Heather manipulate her. Also, Harold gave Leshawna information about us, but I don’t know what.”

“And she just told you all this?” Courtney asked, her eyebrow raised. Bridgette nodded. “What exactly did she say?”

“It was something about how you were the biggest threat to win, and how she wanted people to see that,” Bridgette leaned back in her bed, “she actually said your name, but then tried to take it back. Also, she doesn’t like you much at all.”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “of course she doesn’t. I’m definitely leaning more towards the move being either her or Trent. I’m infinitely more worried about a potential couple than I am about a girl with seemingly no allies and most likely useless information from Harold.”

“I was thinking that, too,” Bridgette agreed, “Gwen was telling all about how close they are, and how they have all these plans. One of them has to go.”

“This is why you’re my favorite,” Courtney smiled, pointing a finger gun at Bridgette with her free hand and causing Duncan to let out an indignant “hey!” She just rolled her eyes at him before continuing. “We have the same mind. Bridge, I’m so proud of you for getting this information.”

Bridgette laughed, “thanks. I wasn’t even trying to find all this out. She just started spilling, so I started paying extra attention.”

Courtney dropped Duncan’s hand and scooted to the edge of her bed, “so, that’s really all for now. We don’t have to decide between the two yet because things can change. Just to make sure, Bridge, you’re good with it?” Bridgette nodded, so Courtney smiled and looked over her shoulder, “babe?”

Duncan grinned at her use of that words and joined her at the edge of her bed, “oh, hell yeah.” He wrapped an arm around her from behind. “Can’t have anyone targeting you, Princess.”

“Alright, then,” Courtney laughed, patting his arm around her neck before checking with the last two bass. DJ and Geoff had been awfully quiet during the whole meeting. Looking towards them, she found that they were distracted by what looked to be a dead cockroach. Awesome. Courtney cleared her throat, “ahem, DJ, Geoff.” That caught both of their attentions, and they looked at her. “Have you been paying any attention to what we’ve been saying?”

DJ and Geoff shared a somewhat sheepish look, telling her the answer was no. Courtney sighed, “of course not.”

Squirming slightly, DJ apologized, “sorry, Court. I kind of stopped listening when you started talking about the next elimination after this one. I just assumed you and Dunc already had it all planned.”

“Yeah,” Geoff rubbed the back of his neck, “sorry. Listening to the two of y’all talk is a little intense sometimes. And I was gettin’ kinda bored, too.”

“It’s fine, I guess,” Courtney started shrugging Duncan off, “as long as you know we’re voting Harold off tonight. Just try to pay attention next time, okay?”

They both nodded and said “okay,” so Courtney smiled, “great, so we’re done here.” She freed herself from Duncan’s grasp and stood. “If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate the chance to talk to Bridgette alone, so we’ll see you three at dinner.”

While DJ and Geoff just nodded and stood, Duncan pouted from his spot on Courtney’s bed, “dinner?”

“Yes, dinner,” Courtney sighed, forcibly helping him up, “we’ve been together almost all day. A little time apart wouldn’t be the worst thing,” She walked him to the door. “You can tell those two what we talked about since they didn’t think it important to listen to us.” She opened the door, allowing DJ and Geoff to quickly slip out and into their cabin. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

“Fine,” Duncan knew she was right. They didn’t need to be together all the time, and it was probably better if they weren’t. However, before he went, he grabbed her shoulder and gave her a quick peck on the lips, “laterz, babe.”

Courtney just rolled her eyes at him again and pushed him the rest of the way out the door, “bye.” Then, she closed the door behind him and turned around the lean on it, letting out a breath. Alone at last. She’d hardly gotten the chance to talk to Bridgette all day. For the past few days really, with the last challenging taking three days and yesterday spent exploring the perks of an exclusive relationship. She smiled at her friend, “how are you?”

Bridgette laughed, “I’m fine. How are you?”

“I’m good, I think,” Courtney started walking back into the cabin, stopping by Bridgette’s bed, “can I sit?” Bridgette nodded, so she took a seat next to the blonde. “I just wanted to make sure we were still on the same page about everything, and I’ve missed you these past few days.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” Bridgette placed a hand on Courtney’s shoulder, “you’ve certainly been busy recently.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Courtney looked down at her lap and clasped her hands together, fully aware of Bridgette’s insinuation, “I just wanted you to know that he might be my boyfriend, but you’re still my best friend.” She looked up just in time to catch Bridgette’s teasing grin. “Yeah, I know. It’s all official, but we won’t talk about that. You’re still my number one ally in this game. I don’t want you think I’m ditching you for him or anything.”

Bridgette smiled, “I didn’t think that, Court. You’re my best friend and number one ally, too. It’s still us against everyone. No one can get between that, not Duncan and not Geoff.”

Courtney nodded, “final two, you and me until the end.” She paused for a moment before suddenly changing the subject. “We should talk about something. How was your afternoon? Mine wasn’t very exciting. I just slept.”

Letting out a long laugh, Bridgette removed her hand from Courtney’s shoulder and told her all about Gwen, Lindsay, and the haiku. She made sure to mention just how much Gwen didn’t like her, and they both had fun laughing about Lindsay not only being a little scared of Duncan but also completely obsessed with Duncan and Courtney as a couple. They joked around until it was time for dinner.

The sixth member of the Killer Bass was having his own meeting. Harold and Leshawna sat on the steps of the dining hall, talking about their days. They both knew this was the last time they would have the chance to do this, barring a major miracle, and there was something unspoken between them. It felt final, but neither wanted it to be.

Over the course of the game, Harold had developed somewhat of a crush on Leshawna. It wasn’t his fault. She was cool and beautiful and funny and actually talked to him. She was so unlike anyone he had ever met before in a good way. He’d taken to writing her anonymous love poems, too nervous to do anything else. He knew she got them, liked them even, and she had expressed multiple times to him that she wished she knew who they were from. Instead of telling her the truth, he would just shrug and tell her he didn’t know. He should had said something because now he had to do it tonight. He’d never forgive himself if he didn’t.

Leshawna, however, had a sneaking suspicion that the haikus were from him, and it grew larger each time another guy was voted out, and she still got them. Trent, Geoff, and Duncan were all caught up with their own girls, and she could count on one hand the number of conversations she’d had with DJ. It could only be Harold, and she thought it was sweet. She’d given him multiple ins to admit it, but he never did. She just hoped he would do it tonight.

The conversation came to a lull, and Harold looked at Leshawna carefully, “I have something to tell you.”

“Oh yeah?” Leshawna asked, turning her head to face him. This could be it, she thought.

Harold took a deep breath and made sure his eyes were on hers, “I like you.”

Leshawna smiled at him. Finally. “I like you too, Harold.”

“No, I mean, I like-like you,” Harold sighed and looked down at his lap, “you know those haikus you’ve been getting? They’re from me. I’m sorry I never said anything before now.”

“I know, sugar,” Leshawna reached over and grabbed his hand, causing him to look at her in alarm. She just laughed. “At least, I thought they were from you. Why didn’t you ever say anything before now?”

“I was scared,” Harold admitted, “you’re so cool and beautiful, and I’m not. You make me nervous.”

Leshawna laughed again, “boy, you’re lucky you’re cute because that is the most whack logic I have ever heard. You’re so cool, you know so much about everything! I’m not as smart as you, I don’t think anyone here is, and that makes me nervous.” She squeezed his hand before dropping it. “What made you change your mind and tell me?”

Harold shrugged, “it was now or never, I guess. I’m getting voted out tonight, and I wanted you to know.” He looked back down at his lap. “It’s okay if you don’t like me back. I understand. I just had to take this chance.”

“Harold, sugar, look at me,” Leshawna ordered, and he did, “you’re sweet, you know, and some kind of funky. I like you, too.”

“Really?” Harold asked, trying and failing to hide his disbelief and excitement, “you mean it?”

“You know I’m not in the business of saying things I don’t mean,” Leshawna chastised, “yes, I mean it.”

Harold’s face broke out into a wide smile, “boo-yeah!” he exclaimed before realizing that was probably the wrong thing to do. He cleared his throat, “I mean good. Very good. Leshawna, if you let me, I will treat you like a queen.”

Leshawna laughed, “alright, then. Let’s see what you can do.” Now that that was settled, both members of the pair felt much better about the conversation they were having and the time left before Harold had to go. They hung out until dinner started, and Harold made Leshawna promise to come see him off. He had something he wanted to do.

The rest of the afternoon and evening passed smoothly, and before long it was time for the marshmallow ceremony. Each member of the Killer Bass Five cast their vote for Harold, and Harold sent a spare vote Duncan’s way. Even if he was getting voted out, it didn’t mean he couldn’t take one final stand against the person who had made his time at camp the hardest. It wouldn’t do anything in the long run, but it would feel good.

The Killer Bass gathered around the campfire, Harold bringing all his stuff with him. Chris could already tell that there was no way they would be able to edit it to even look close, so he hoped that whatever Harold was planning would bring the drama. Mostly everyone just looked bored, and Chris knew it was going to be this way until the ceremony was over. He figured he might as well just get it over with quickly.

“As you know, if you do not receive a marshmallow, you will be forced to walk the dock of shame, and you can never, ever return to camp,” Chris gave them a taunting smiling, hoping that it would bait some emotion out of someone. It didn’t work. He sighed, “you guys aren’t very into this tonight, are you?”

A chorus of “noes” filled the campfire area. Chris sighed again, “Harold, you want to tell me why you brought all your stuff?”

Harold nodded, “I’m getting voted out tonight.”

“And how can you possibly know that?” Chris asked, largely annoyed by how this was going, “anything can happen, man!”

“Every single person on this team except for me is in an alliance together. It’s not really some big mystery,” Harold stood up and walked over to Chris before addressing his team, “who voted for me tonight?”

This was ridiculous. No one was going to admit to voting anyone out before the marshmallows had been given out. But, then, Chris watched as Courtney’s hand went up, followed quickly by Duncan’s. Then Geoff’s, then DJ’s, then, finally, Bridgette’s. That was everyone. Chris couldn’t believe it. Every single person admitted it.

Harold turned back to Chris, “do we really have to do the whole marshmallow thing? I don’t really think there’s a point tonight.”

Chris shrugged, giving up control of the situation, “sure, fine. You can go. The Boat of Losers awaits, whatever. Do you at least want to tell everyone who you voted for? Because apparently, that’s what we’re doing tonight.”

“Duncan,” Harold said before Chris even finished his statement, “I voted for Duncan.” He turned towards said boy. “Screw you and your dumb pranks and your asshole attitude. You’re a bully, and I’m so glad to be done of you.”

It was silent for a minute as the other Killer Bass reacted to what Harold had just said and as they waited for Duncan to react to what he had just said. That was certainly gutsy of him. DJ and Geoff shared a silent look, both ready to stop Duncan if he decided on a physical reaction. Bridgette exhaled a long breath and covered her mouth with a hand. Courtney reached an arm across the space between them and placed what she hoped was a calming hand on his knee, causing him to look at her and smile. That’s when she knew nothing bad was going to happen.

Chris just hoped that whatever happened, it would be something, anything that could be used for drama. He needed this. Most everyone held their breath as they watched Duncan stand up and approach the other boy. Then, his hand clasped onto his shoulder. It was impressive how Harold didn’t even flinch.

“You know what, Harold, good for you,” Duncan said, “you need any help carrying your crap to the Boat of Losers?”

Chris groaned. Of course Duncan wasn’t going to react negatively to this. Of course.

Harold gave him a small smile, “I’ve got it, but thanks.” Then, he walked over to his stump, and picked up all his stuff. “If you want to follow me to the Dock of Shame, I have something to tell you all.”

His teammates, Chris, and the Screaming Gophers, who were just lurking around, all did as he requested. Hopefully this was it. Hopefully something actually good. Harold walked down the Dock of Shame and stopped right before embarking the Boat of Losers.

“Farewell, Total Drama Island,” Harold waved to the crowd, “I loved, I lost, and I got to show the whole world my mad skills. What more can a man ask for?” The other campers didn’t answer, opting instead to stare blankly at him. He threw his stuff in the boat before readdressing his peers. “I may have lost the game, but I come out with a much greater reward. The beautiful Leshawna, you have my heart. I will never forget you, and I ask that you do the same.”

“Baby, you are some kind of freaky!” Leshawna exclaimed, walking down the dock to meet him and throwing her arms around him when she did, “you know I’m never gonna forget you!”

Harold smiled, “may I give you a kiss to remember me by?” Leshawna nodded, so Harold pressed his lips to hers for a long three seconds. Then, he pulled away. “It’s been real, Total Drama Island.”

As Harold got on the Boat of Losers, the rest of camp was buzzing about what just happened. Bridgette, Gwen, and Lindsay, who had found each other in the crowd, were wearing mushy looks and clinging onto each other. That was so sweet! Also, Bridgette and Gwen were happy to know they were right about the haiku. Chris let out a loud cheer despite not caring one bit at all about Harold and Leshawna’s relationship. What he did care about was ratings, and this was sure to raise them.

The others were not as excited. Geoff was mostly just confused that Harold knew people on the other team, and DJ did not enjoy having to watch two people kiss. Heather rolled her eyes, not surprised that yet another two teens had succumbed to their hormones. Straight people were the worst. Duncan and Courtney shared an unimpressed look, silently agreeing to never doing anything like this ever. Quiet moments alone were much more comfortable than big, romantic displays.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was X-Treme Torture. I had some trouble with this chapter, but I hope it came together well. I have not yet started Brunch of Disgustingness, but I have a much clearer plan for that on than this one. That said, I don't know how long it will take. I plan for that one to be three parts. Part one will be the challenge, part two will be a day spent with the campers on rewards, and part three will be a day spent with the campers left at camp. Since there are four guys and six girls it will not be battle of the sexes. I already have the teams (and everything) all planned out. I am so excited for the merge!!
> 
> And, as always, drop a comment or a kudos if you enjoyed it. I would really appreciate it! Thanks, and see you next time! You can find me on tumblr at i-wish-i-was-kidding if you ever want fic updates or just want to chat!


	11. A Matter of Comfort

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! Here is The Brunch of Disgustingness! Sorry it took so long to get out. I hope it never takes me this long again, but I can't make any promises. Also, since this is the Brunch of Disgustingess, there will be multiple mentions of campers getting sick throughout, and also two scenes of it happening. It doesn't go into any detail, but if you are like me and don't like that kind of stuff, just beware. Both scenes you can see it coming if you want to scroll through them.

Courtney leaned in for another kiss, her hand resting on Duncan’s neck just above his dog collar and her thumb caressing his check. It was soft and slow, his teeth lightly grazing her bottom lip. Their lips moved against each other’s tenderly. They both wanted this moment to last forever. Alas, it couldn’t, and, about a minute after it started, she pulled away. “This has been the perfect morning. Thank you, Duncan.”

Duncan smiled at her before kissing her again. This one was shorter than the last, but it had the same sweetness to it. He broke the kiss and found her eyes with his, looking at her in adoration. “You’re welcome, Princess.”

Their morning had been a lot of this. Yesterday, Duncan had told Courtney he wanted to take her on a date before the challenge in the morning, just something for the two of them to do together. She had agreed almost immediately, eager to see what he had planned. He’d woken them up at 5:15 AM after spending the night in the girls’ cabin yet again. It’d become a habit of theirs, one neither wanted to break. Then, he made her get dressed before dragging her through the woods to some clearing. They got there just in time to see the sunrise. And it was beautiful.

That was a while ago. It was now almost eight o’clock, and the time between had been spent talking about everything and kissing, a good morning for both of them. She had somehow found her way into his lap, and the blanket he had brought to combat the cool Canadian morning air was wrapped around them.

“I actually have something for you,” Duncan said, leaning away slightly so that he could pull it out of his pocket, “it’s, uh, you might think it’s weird or creepy or whatever, but I made it, and I wanted you to have it. It’s not much, considering we’re stuck on this God awful island, but it’s something.”

Not knowing him to be one to ramble, Courtney covered his mouth with her hand, “I’m sure I’m going to love whatever it is. Now give it to me.”

Duncan laughed at her bluntness, “okay, Princess, but if you hate it just know that this was the best I could do. You’ll have to wait ’til we get off this island before you get a real gift.” Then, he held the present out for her.

Courtney eyed what looked to be a wooden trinket of some sort before gingerly taking it out of his hands. Closer observation showed it to be a carved skull. She ran her fingers across it, feeling the incredible detail he had used. It was expertly done, and she could almost feel the way her heart fluttered. After examining the front, she flipped it over, not expecting to find anything on the back and at first she didn’t. Then, something at the base of the skull caught her eye: _D+C Forever_ with a heart carved around it. The flutters in her heart increased tenfold.

“Duncan, this, I love it,” Courtney wrapped her arms around his neck, “when did you make this?”

“Started it during the last challenge,” Duncan shrugged, and she could feel the movement all over her body, “after you agreed to be my girlfriend. Been working on it a little here and there since. I finished it yesterday but didn’t know if I should give it to you yet. You don’t think it’s too, I don’t know, cheesy? Or inappropriate or anything?”

Courtney shook her head, “I love it,” she repeated, “it’s perfect, really, and it’s so you. It means a lot that you made this for me. Thank you.”

“Yeah? Well, you mean a lot to me,” Duncan’s hands found her hips, and he lightly squeezed them, “I’m so glad you like it, babe.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Courtney asked before giving him a short kiss, “it’s so well made and thoughtful. And D plus C forever? Duncan, that’s so, it’s… You put on this tough guy front, but your heart is so full and so pure, and I’m incredibly grateful that you’re sharing it with me. It’s like this big secret only we get to know about. You make me feel like I’m special.”

“You are special, Court,” Duncan murmured, looking down at their laps, “you know that, right?”

Instead of responding with words, Courtney just grabbed his face and brought it back up. She looked into his eyes for a long moment, searching for the truth behind his words. Most of the time, she didn’t feel special at all, but she did now. She did with him. Then, she closed the distance between them, pressing her lips to his.

This kiss was much hungrier than the ones they had already shared this morning and most of the gentleness was gone. Courtney parted her lips and slid her tongue across his teeth. He opened his mouth for her, and her tongue darted into his mouth. As she massaged his tongue with hers, paying special attention to his piercing, his hands rubbed her sides up and down.

As it went on, the kiss grew in intensity. One of Courtney’s hands swept up his face and into his hair, and she ran her fingers through his mohawk. The other dropped down and was making its way back up under his shirt. She didn’t want it off, but she wanted to feel his skin against hers. Duncan had successfully moved the action into her mouth and was currently brushing his tongue against the roof of her mouth. The coolness of his tongue ring caused her to moan each time it made contact. Their blanket had fallen to the side, but neither cared much about that.

Suddenly, “ _all campers to the dining hall in fifteen minutes!”_ Chris laughed over the loudspeaker, _“I have an important announcement for everyone! Be excited!”_ The mood was sufficiently ruined.

“Fuck off,” Duncan shouted as he pulled away from her, even though he knew Chris couldn’t hear him. There were no cameras out here, and he had made sure no one followed them. This morning was for them only, at least until the challenge started. Which was now.

“Chris can’t hear you, babe,” Courtney laughed, pushing herself out of his lap and standing up. She offered him a hand. “Come on, we need to go so we aren’t late.”

Duncan groaned and took her hand, hoisting himself up as he did so, “I’d rather stay out here with you.” Then, he grabbed the blanket and held it under his free arm. Courtney let go of his hand and looped her arm through his.

“Me too, but we have to go,” Courtney started walking, forcing Duncan along, “Chris has an announcement for us, I’m assuming the merge. We’ll have to do this some other time when there isn’t a challenge. I don’t know what you were expecting with there being one today. It almost always starts in the morning. Now come on, we can’t be late.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course not, Princess,” Duncan said, looking over to her, “I know that would terrible for you.”

“Shut up,” Courtney reached her other arm across her body and rubbed Duncan’s upper chest.

As the two of them walked back to the main camp, they talked about the merge they both knew was about to happen. After dropping off the blanket at the cabin, they headed to the dining hall.

Once everyone was there, Chris informed them that they had, in fact, reached the merge. To commemorate that, they were having a mixed teams challenge for reward. No elimination at all. Oh yeah, and Courtney and Bridgette had to move in with the gopher girls and Trent had to move in with the bass boys. Great. That would be fun.

Chris released them, giving them half an hour to pack and move into their new cabins. As they walked across camp, Heather surprised Bridgette by wrapping an arm around her.

“Bridgette!” Heather smiled, her voice superficially sweet, “we’re going to have so much fun together! You and Court are going to love it in our cabin.”

Bridgette glanced at Heather, a bit unsettled, “I didn’t know you knew my name.”

Heather’s smile grew larger, “of course I know your name, Bridgette! Blonde one was just a fun nickname for us! You’d say we’re friends, right?”

“Uhm, no?” Bridgette answered, looking for anyone nearby to get her out of this. She didn’t know what Heather was trying to do here, but she did know she didn’t like it. “Actually, the last time we spoke I think you made it really clear that we weren’t friends.”

“Oh, but that was so long ago!” Heather exclaimed, and Bridgette just blinked. It was three days ago. “I’ve been doing some serious thinking, and I’ve decided that you and I, and Court and Linds, of course, are going to be such good friends!”

Looking back at Heather, Bridgette nodded. Maybe it would be easier to just play along. “Maybe.”

“Not maybe,” Heather rubbed Bridgette’s shoulder, “definitely.”

“Okay, then,” Bridgette gave her a small smile. She didn’t know what she was supposed to say here. Not only did she not want to be having this conversation, but Heather also wasn’t giving her room to say anything. Thankfully, that was when someone slipped their hand into hers. Instead of freaking out about it, Bridgette turned to her savior, eager to find out who it was.

“Bridge, what are you doing?” Courtney asked, eyeing Heather warily.

Bridgette smiled widely at her friend and opened her mouth to say something. However, before she could, Heather spoke, “Court! Just the other person I wanted to see! I was just telling Bridgette about how good friends the three of us are going to become!”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “We’ll never be friends with you, and I’d prefer it if you didn’t call me Court. That’s reserved for my actual friends.” She squeezed Bridgette’s hand. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

Then, without giving either of them a chance to say anything, Courtney pulled Bridgette out of Heather’s grasp and into the cabin. Safely inside, Courtney let go of Bridgette’s hand, “seriously, what the fuck was that about?”

“I don’t know,” Bridgette shrugged, walking over to her bed and pulling her bag out from underneath, “she kept saying that we were friends or that she wanted us to be friends or something. Doesn’t matter. I don’t think she’s someone I want to be friends with.”

“Of course she isn’t,” Courtney started pulling clothes out of her drawers, “she’s a snake, and you’re perfect.”

Bridgette laughed, “thanks, but I’m not perfect.” She looked over her shoulder towards Courtney, “so, where were you off to at five o’clock this morning?”

Courtney paused her packing and turned towards her friend, “did we wake you?” Bridgette nodded. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was going to set the alarm that early.” She turned back to her suitcase. “And he just took me to watch the sunrise. It was nice.”

“Awe, that’s sweet!” Bridgette walked from her bed to Courtney’s and sat down on it, grinning at her, “but you were gone for, like, three hours. Must have been some sunrise.”

It wasn’t hard to pick up on the innuendo in Bridgette’s comment. Courtney just sighed, “it was nice,” she repeated, sitting down next to her.

Bridgette laughed again, “I’m sure it was nice.” She poked Courtney in the shoulder. “Just you and Duncan, hanging out all alone. It’s like a date!”

“It was a date,” Courtney mumbled, pushing herself off her bed and ignoring Bridgette’s squeal of delight, “can we just go back to packing now, please?”

“Whatever you want,” Bridgette said before going back to her own bed. She started shoving her clothes into her bag unlike Courtney, who was making sure everything was perfectly folded. Her haphazard method resulted in her clothes not fitting well, so she dumped the contents of her bag back onto her bed and groaned, “I so don’t want to move cabins.”

“Yeah, me neither,” Courtney looked over her shoulder, rolling her eyes at Bridgette’s mess when she saw it, “there’s going to be six of us in that cabin. I don’t know about you, but, for me, this move is purely symbolic. I still plan on sleeping here most nights, at least until it’s less crowded in there.”

Bridgette wanted to laugh. Of course Courtney wasn’t actually going to move cabins. “I figured. You love curling up next to your boyfriend after a long day too much.”

Courtney hummed, neither confirming nor denying the statement. She just continued filling up her suitcase. All her clothing was already packed, and she was currently working on things like jewelry and makeup. Bridgette let out a soft giggle at her non-response and folded clothes. She hated this. Then, there was a knock on their door. Knowing it was most likely their guys, Bridgette used this as an excuse to take another break, shuffling over to the door and opening it. Sure enough DJ, Geoff, and Duncan were all standing on the other side.

“Sup, Bridge? We wanted to see if y’all needed any help packing,” DJ smiled, “we felt bad just sitting in our cabin. Can we come in?”

“Really?” Bridgette asked, almost disbelievingly. DJ nodded. “Yes! Thanks! I hate packing so much.” She stepped out of the doorway, ushering them into the cabin. “I need so much help.”

DJ laughed while Geoff gave her his toothiest smile, “that’s what we’re here for! I’m super good at packing. Deej ‘n I will have it done in no time!”

Grabbing Geoff’s wrist with one hand and DJ’s with the other, Bridgette pulled them towards her bed, “oh, thank you so much. I hate folding clothes. I hate making everything try and fit. Thank you!”

While DJ and Geoff helped Bridgette, Duncan strolled over to Courtney’s bed. He gave her a small smile before stretching out across it, careful not to mess up her system. She looked close to being done, and he didn’t want to do anything to disrupt that. He propped himself up on his elbow and asked, “doing okay, babe?”

“Yes,” Courtney answered, fitting a book into her suitcase before looking at him, “but aren’t you supposed to be helping me? ’Cos it looks like you’re just lying in my bed.”

“You want me to help?” Duncan raised his brow, “because I can. I just didn’t think you’d want me to. You know you like things a specific way.”

Courtney sighed, “of course I don’t want you to help. I’m almost done. I don’t even know why I’m packing,” she gave him a meaningful look, “I’m most likely sleeping here tonight, as long as Chris doesn’t forbid it or something.”

Knowing exactly what she was saying, Duncan’s face lit up in an easy grin, “alright. Sounds good, Court.”

Over the next ten minutes, both girls finished packing, and they were now trying to leave the cabin. Key word being trying. DJ, Duncan, and Courtney were all standing at the door, ready to go, but Geoff and Bridgette stood in the middle of the cabin. They were giving each other maybe the sappiest looks the other three had ever seen and they were holding each other’s hands.

“I’m really gonna miss you, Bridge,” Geoff said, “it was real cool being on a team with you. It sucks that it’s over.”

Bridgette nodded, “I’m really going to miss you, too. It was awesome having you on the other side of the wall. I’m going to miss that, too.” She could feel her eyes brimming with tears, but she blinked them away as they came. “I don’t want anything to change.”

Geoff squeezed her hands, “God, Bridge, me neither. I love having you around.”

“I love being around,” Bridgette dropped his hands and wrapped her arms around his neck, standing on her tiptoes. His arms came around her, and he patted her back. “This sucks.”

“It sucks so much. Wish you could just stay here.”

Bridgette sighed, “me too.”

Their friends watched this play out with confusion. Why were they acting like they were never going to see each other again? Bridgette was only moving about twenty meters away. They would still be close enough. Sending an annoyed look to Duncan, Courtney cleared her throat, “uh, guys. Do you think maybe this is a little much? The game’s not over yet. Bridgette and I aren’t even going that far. We’re all still going to be here.”

“What?” Bridgette asked, pulling away from Geoff, “oh, uh, yeah, that’s true.” She picked up her bag, slung it over her shoulder, and walked over to Courtney. “I guess we should probably get going now.”

“I would say,” Courtney started, “we need to get settled be–” The door opened, distracting her from what she was saying, and Trent stepped inside. He was met with five pairs of eyes blinking at him.

“Hey, uh, everyone.” Trent awkwardly looked around at the former bass. Why were they all here? “Is this where I’m supposed to be?”

Courtney shook her head, taking this one, “no, sorry. This was our cabin. We were all just saying bye. But, Bridgette and I are going to go now. Sorry. You’ll be next door. We’ll leave you to get acquainted with these three.”

Trent let out an uncomfortable chuckle, “oh, that’s fine. Us guys weren’t allowed in our ladies’ cabin, so thank you, I guess. This is my first time.”

“Sure,” Courtney looked at Duncan. No guys in the cabin? They were definitely going to utilize this empty space. She looked back at Trent, “anyway, nice to see you.” She walked over to the door and held it open for everyone. DJ was the first one out, and he opened the guys side for Trent, allowing him to go inside his new cabin. Geoff joined them, and Bridgette, Courtney, and Duncan were left on the porch. Courtney sent Bridgette a look that told her to give them a second, so she walked down the steps and waited.

“Be nice to him,” Courtney whispered, grabbing his shoulder and giving him a short goodbye kiss, “don’t make things too hard for him.”

“You be nice to them,” Duncan shot back, “you’re a lot meaner than I am, babe.” He gave her his own goodbye kiss. “See you soon.”

Courtney nodded and let go of his shoulder. Then, she descended the stairs and grabbed Bridgette’s hand, “you ready for this?”

Bridgette shook her head, “no, but I guess it’s time.”

Meanwhile, Lindsay was doing her best to clean up some for the newcomers. Their cabin was a mess, and she didn’t want Bridgette and Courtney to be welcomed with a mess. She hummed as she fluffed the pillows on all the empty beds, making sure it was homey enough. Her space was already all tidy, but no one else had tried, even though she told them they should. Bridgette and Courtney deserved a nice cabin. She had been in theirs plenty of times, and this one didn’t hold up.

Risking a look behind her, she saw that Heather and Leshawna were about 30 seconds away from a nasty fight. No! They couldn’t! Her friends were going to be here any second! There couldn’t be a fight, there just couldn’t! That was no way to be greeted into a new home.

“Guys, stop it,” Lindsay pleaded, but they didn’t even glance at her. They just continued going at it about pudding pockets, of all things. Of course they weren’t even going to try to be nice.

“I ate them,” Heather admitted right as their door opened, “so what?”

Lindsay’s head snapped to Bridgette and Courtney, who were just standing in the doorway. Bridgette looked overwhelmed by all the yelling, and Courtney was unimpressed. No! They hated it already! This wasn’t going as planned. She ran over to them, once again going unnoticed by her cabinmates.

“I’m so sorry," she whispered once she reached them, “I tried to clean for you. I tried to get them to stop fighting. I was so excited to share a cabin with you, but it’s already going so poorly! I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Linds,” Bridgette placed a hand on Lindsay’s shoulder, “it’s not your fault.”

“But it’s supposed to be perfect for you!” Lindsay complained, tearing up when she heard Heather call out Leshawna about her bra, “and it’s not going perfect. You’re not going to want to stay here! I hate fighting.”

Bridgette sighed and rubbed Lindsay’s shoulder, “I know. But you have us now. I think things are about to get better in here for you. Let’s just get through this, okay?”

Wiping tears away from her eyes, Lindsay nodded, “okay. But how? There’s no stopping it. I already tried.”

Bridgette laughed and pointed to Courtney, who looked more than annoyed. She had no doubt that she would be able to stop it. “We wait.”

“Yeah, well, you got so much junk in your trunk your jeans should come with a trash compactor!” Heather jeered, causing Leshawna to roll up her already short sleeves, “oooh, you want a piece of this? Let’s go!”

“Jesus Christ,” Courtney loudly said, crossing an arm over her chest and gesturing with the other, “are we actually expected to stay here? Thank God I have a valid reason to stay with the guys because there is no way I’m sleeping here with all of you. It’s a mess in here, and all your fighting is going to give me a headache.”

Just like that, some of the tension that usually filled the cabin was cut. Heather’s face morphed into a large smile, “Courtney! Bridgette! You made it! I am truly sorry about that; we usually have such a good time in here! Just, some people don’t know how to behave themselves around guests.” She glared at Leshawna before walking to the front of the cabin. “Let’s find the two of you beds!”

Courtney’s eyes narrowed, “no thank you, I’m good. I’d rather not go anywhere with you.”

Her smile briefly faltering, Heather turned to Bridgette, “well, you won’t say no to me, right Bridge?” She looped her arm through the blonde’s and pulled her towards her bed, something she allowed mostly because she didn’t know how to get out of it. Lindsay followed behind them. “You can sleep here, right next to me!” Heather said, showing off a bottom bed that already looked like it belonged to someone.

“Hey! Heather, that’s my bed!” Lindsay pointed out, even though she knew Heather already knew that.

Bridgette gave Lindsay an apologetic look before turning back to Heather, “oh, I couldn’t take Lindsay’s bed. I can just, I can sleep up here.” She threw her bag onto the bunk above it. “It’s really no problem. I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes.”

Heather shook her head, “you wouldn’t be! Bridgette, we’re all friends here! Friends do nice things for each other,” she turned to glare at Lindsay, “like give up their beds.”

“You can’t just give my bed away,” Lindsay looked close to tears again, “it’s not up to you.”

“I can’t take Lindsay’s bed. She’s my friend,” Bridgette reiterated, “I can just sleep up here.”

Heather looked between the two of them, ready to force Bridgette to take that bunk, mostly because she could, and she wanted to. However, before she could, Leshawna spoke, “girl, I think you got the right idea.” She walked over to Courtney, who was still by the door. “I wouldn’t want to stay here either. Heather’s a hard person to live with.”

“Excuse me, miss I leave my shit everywhere,” Heather retorted while Gwen laughed humorlessly, “you have no right to complain. She wouldn’t even still be here if it weren’t for you. Bet you wish you could go back and vote her out now.”

“Girl, it has been four days. You need to get over it,” Leshawna turned to Gwen, “not everything has to do with you. You’re honestly worse than her right now.”

Heather marched across the cabin, “Gwennie’s always worse than me. And could you please stay out of this? Lindsay and I were just having a small disagreement. Nothing to do with you.”

It didn’t take long for things to fall into chaos. It was Heather versus Leshawna versus Gwen, none of the girls on each other’s side. Knowing that there was nothing she could do about it this time, Courtney walked over to Bridgette and Lindsay, who were watching the madness with their mouths opened, and grabbed their hand. “Do you maybe want to get out of here?” She whispered. Right away both blondes nodded, so they snuck out of the cabin.

There were still ten minutes until the challenge started, but they headed to the dining hall anyway. Where else was there to go? They were the first ones there, and they sat at the old bass table. Bridgette and Lindsay were sitting on one side and Courtney on the other.

A few minutes later, the guys joined them. Duncan and DJ filled in around Courtney like normal, and Geoff took the empty seat next to Bridgette. Trent stood at the end, trying to decide if he should sit with them or go to the old gopher table. Lindsay made the choice for him, smiling warmly and patting the spot next to her. He took it. It looked like everyone was going to be sitting together today.

Slowly, Leshawna, then Gwen, then Heather entered the dining hall. They all sat at the old bass table, no one wanting to be left behind. Then, Chris and Chef came out of the kitchen and stood at the front of the room.

“It’s time for today’s challenge!” Chris announced.

The campers looked around at each other and him. Where was breakfast? Leshawna voiced that question.

Chris and Chef started giggling like little kids, telling the campers that today was going to be rough, “oh, we’ll get to that! First, we have to pick teams! We’ll be having a school yard pick! One bass captain and one gopher captain! You must pick someone who was on the opposite team as you. Got it?” The campers nodded. “Great! Take a moment to decide who your captain will be, and then we’ll get started!”

“I’m captain!” Heather called, standing up, “it’s mine!” Her ex-teammates just rolled their eyes but let her have it. No one else really wanted it, and they didn’t think it was worth it to fight her on it.

The former bass also made a fast decision, but it was made as a team. It was no question who should be captain. It only felt right to give it to the person who had led their team all summer. Duncan patted Courtney’s knee and whispered, “all you, babe,” as she stood up.

Heather and Courtney joined Chris and Chef at the front of the room, and their host smiled at them. The captain picks were not surprising in the least. “Alright. Remember, bass have to pick gophers, and gophers have to pick bass. Who wants first pick?”

“Me! I do!” Heather said, her eyes daring Courtney to argue. She didn’t. Heather hummed as she looked each bass up and down. This was all for show. She already knew exactly who she wanted. “Hmmm, let’s see. I think I want… other blond one!” She gave Bridgette a spiteful smile. “Geoff, is it?”

“Uh, yeah?” Geoff reluctantly stood and walked to stand by Heather. He hadn’t expected her to pick him of all people. They’d talked a total of zero times and now seemed like a weird time to start. He sent his friends a confused look and saw Bridgette rolling her eyes.

Chris smiled, “well, that was unexpected! Heather, gotta say, I appreciate that. Keep the viewers on their toes.” He turned to the CIT. “Okay, Courtney, your turn!”

Scanning the crowd, Courtney’s eyes landed on Lindsay. Who else could she choose? “Lindsay.”

Lindsay squealed and ran to the front of the room, pulling Courtney into a hug, “oh, yay! Thanks for picking me!”

Before long, both teams were set. Geoff picked Leshawna, saying a random name. Lindsay picked Bridgette because she was her friend. Leshawna picked DJ, liking his look more than Duncan’s. Bridgette picked Trent because she knew Gwen wouldn’t mesh well with Courtney. This left Gwen for Team Heather and Duncan for Team Courtney. It was already clear to everyone which team had the advantage over the other. The two teams settled at different tables and waited.

“Now that we have that all taken care of, it’s time to start today’s challenge!” Chris let out a loud laugh, “today we will be doing the Brunch of Disgustingness! You’ll be getting a nine course meal. Each member of each team must finish each dish. You will not know if the next dish is grosser than the last, not as gross, or just as gross. Just, that it will likely be, gross!”

“Tell them what they’ll get if they win, Chris!” Chef exclaimed.

As Chris explained the reward, sounds of disbelief and disgust filled the dining hall. This couldn’t be the challenge. There was no way. Chris just laughed as he gave the campers a moment to collect themselves before the challenge officially started. This one was going to be a doozy, and everyone knew it. After calming down some, one team did their best to come up with some kind of strategy.

Courtney closed her eyes and exhaled slowly before looking around at her teammates, “how are we with eating things?” She could already knew this wasn’t going to be good. Bridgette’s vegetarianism couldn’t not be a roadblock, and Duncan didn’t have the same garbage disposal diet that Geoff and DJ did. She didn’t know Lindsay or Trent’s eating habits, but Lindsay seemed like the type to be picky. Their advantage of actually getting along wouldn’t be much help here.

“As long as I don’t have to eat meat I should be good,” Bridgette said, rubbing a temple, “but I’m sure several of the dishes will have meat in them. I’ll try, but it really goes against everything I stand for. I don’t want to let us down.”

“You won’t,” Courtney reached a hand across the table and set it on Bridgette’s forearm, “we’ll figure something out. I promise, Bridge, you won’t have to eat any meat today. I won’t allow it.”

“I don’t know what you can do,” Bridgette sighed, “but thanks for saying that. I usually have a pretty strong stomach. I can do anything that isn’t meat.”

Courtney smiled and took her hand back, “you might have to. We’re going to get around this each member, each dish rule.” She turned to the blonde beside her, “Lindsay? How picky are you?”

“Pretty picky,” Lindsay admitted, looking down at her lap, “I can’t eat gross things. They make me sick.”

Expecting this, Courtney sighed, “try. Please. I know you want to win this resort. It’s probably even better than the shower you won last challenge. Let’s show Heather and everyone that you’re a power player. I know that you can do this.” She didn’t give her any time to respond before looking across the table at Trent. “And you?”

Trent shrugged, “I think I can hack this. I don’t have a lot of practice eating gross food, but how hard could it be?”

“Don’t ask that,” Courtney pressed a hand to her forehead, “never ask that.” She shook her head before turning to her boyfriend. “Babe? You going to be okay?”

“Yeah?” Duncan said, more of a question than an answer. He was confused by her implication that he wouldn’t be okay. “More worried about you than I am me. You never eat what Chef serves. Are _you_ going to be okay?”

Courtney nodded, “I have an iron stomach. I can eat almost anything and not be sick.”

“Iron stomach!? Since when? Then why don’t you ever eat anything? Shit, Princess.” Duncan crossed his arms over his chest and gave her an incredulous look while Bridgette laughed, amused by this revelation, “really Court? Your diet is so bland! I wouldn’t have thought this about you at all.”

“Shut up,” Courtney, much like Duncan, crossed her arms over her chest, “I just would prefer not to eat the garbage Chef tries to pass off as food. Just because I can eat it doesn’t mean I want to. I have standards. Now, how do we think the other team is going to do?”

Across the dining hall, DJ was trying to have a similar conversation, “so, we should probably come up with a game plan. I don’t know what but something.”

Heather shook her head, “why? I think it’s fairly simple. Just eat everything put in front of you. That’s the game plan, just focus on your own food. We don’t even have to work together for this. It’s so easy.”

“Are you sure?” DJ asked, glancing at the other table. They were having an in-depth discussion about something, likely their strategy. Courtney liked to talk through everything, and it felt weird not having the same kind of chat on his team. “Teamwork never hurt anything.”

“Of course I’m sure,” Heather glared, “I don’t know how things worked over on the Killer Bass, but we Screaming Gophers never saw the need to get along. Isn’t that right, ladies?” Gwen and Leshawna both nodded. “See, now shut up and preserve your energy.”

DJ nodded. He wanted to point out that teamwork was necessary for any challenge, but he kept his mouth shut. Heather was intimidating. Instead, he just shared jaded look with Geoff. This was going to suck.

Then, it was finally time for the challenge to begin. Chef served the first course on a silver platter, and Chris urged the campers to open it up and see what it was. They did what he asked and found what looked like meatballs. Was that it? Meatball weren’t gross. Wondering what the catch was, the campers looked down at their dish and at each other. After about 30 seconds, Trent poked one of the meatballs with his fork, and slowly brought it to his mouth. “Just meatballs? That’s not too bad.” Then, he stuck it in his mouth.

Chris laughed, “well, technically, you’re right. But these are kind of… special,” he said before gesturing to Chef, who smiled widely, “it’s beef testicles.” Then, their hosts took a step back, letting the campers react.

Eyes widening, Trent spit the meatball back onto his plate. He couldn’t eat testicles! “Nope, can’t do this.” The other guys were having similar problems, but the girls, excluding Bridgette, were having no issues.

Courtney picked up a meatball with her fork and took a bite, tearing it in two, “yes, you can, and you’re going to. Trent, you said you could hack this. Don’t make yourself a liar. Eat them so we can get this point.”

“I know I said that, but I can’t eat testicles. You wouldn’t get it because you’re not a guy, but it’s just wrong,” Trent tried, looking over to Duncan for some help. He could hear Geoff complaining from the other table and hoped that his teammate would, too. She couldn’t force both to do it. However, to his horror, he watched Duncan shrug and bring a meatball to his mouth. No way. “How can you just eat that?”

“Easy,” Duncan set his hand on Courtney’s thigh, suppressing a wince. It wasn’t easy, but he would eat everything for her. “They’re just meatballs, and they’re really not that bad. Don’t think about it.”

Trent shook his head, “I can’t not think about it! Those poor bulls lost their manhood for this!”

“You’re kidding me,” Courtney sighed while Duncan rolled his eyes, “dude, don’t be so dramatic. They’re bulls. Animals. It’s all the same. Now get eating.”

“Fine,” Trent huffed, mostly because he didn’t want to find out just how convincing Courtney could be firsthand, especially with Duncan in her corner. That didn’t stop him from calling out his other teammates, “but Lindsay hasn’t touched hers, and Bridgette’s a vegetarian. It doesn’t even matter if I eat them, you already said she didn’t have to.”

“I have a plan,” Courtney said, turning to Bridgette. She was wearing a slightly sheepish expression. “No, Bridge, don’t make that face. You’re not eating any meat. Just sit tight for now, and then I’ll take care of it.” She turned to the other blonde, “Lindsay, please, eat. They’re not that bad, I promise. I know it’s not what you’re used to but try. For the reward.”

Lindsay nodded before bringing one to her mouth, “okay. For the spa.” She closed her eyes and placed it in her mouth, chewing slowly. It was rubbery and overly seasoned. “This is so gross.” Despite that, she picked up another and kept eating. They had a spa to win.

Courtney smiled, “great. Now Trent, you’re the only one left. You said fine, so eat them. Bridgette, if you wait just a second, I think I can make Chris come to an agreement about this.”

“Are you sure?” Bridgette asked, “I mean, I can try. I don’t want to be any trouble. I’ve only been a vegetarian for five years. It hasn’t been that long.”

“It’s not trouble, and you’re not going to eat them,” Courtney stood up, “you’re not ending you’re five year meatless streak for a challenge. Chris is going to see it my way. You know I can be very persuading when I want to be.”

Bridgette had to stifle a laugh. Courtney always got what she wanted, and that’s why she wasn’t feeling too bad about this. “I know. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Courtney said before walking over to Chris. While her team knew what she was doing, the other didn’t. They stopped what they were doing (which wasn’t eating the meatballs) to watch. Why was she going up there? What did she have to talk to Chris about?

When Courtney made it to him, Chris looked her over with thinly veiled contempt. Usually, he quite liked Courtney, but not when she made things difficult for him. He didn’t know why she was here, but he assumed it had something to do with Bridgette’s full plate. Chances were, she wanted to give her friend a pass for the meat, but that wouldn’t happen. It wasn’t his fault she was a vegetarian.

Courtney returned that contempt, rolling her eyes, “Chris, if I could just speak with you if the kitchen?”

“Sorry, Courtney, no can do,” Chris tapped his finger on the clipboard, “we have a schedule to keep up. No time. Sorry!” He wasn’t sorry, and everyone knew that.

“Chris, this will only take a minute, depending on how agreeable you are. I have an important matter to discuss with you. You owe it to me and everyone else to hear me out.”

Seeing the stubbornness in Courtney’s eyes, Chris groaned, “fine. But I don’t see things going your way. This is just to get you to shut up.”

Courtney smirked, “we’ll see.” Then, the two disappeared into the kitchen.

While Courtney’s team had been doing well with their meatballs, no one on Heather’s team had finished their plate. Heather and Leshawna had both made it halfway through, Gwen a little less, but neither Geoff nor DJ had touched the meatballs. It seemed wrong. Taking a quick look at the other table, they were discouraged to find that there was only one full plate left. They even had three empty plates!

“Why is no one done yet?” Heather asked, looking at her teammates with disgust, “they’re winning! They can’t win. Eat faster!”

“Why don’t you eat faster?” Leshawna grumbled, “you’re not done either, Queenie. I thought we were supposed to focus on our own plates.”

Heather glared, “we are, but it seems like some of us need a little extra motivation.” She turned to DJ and Geoff. “Boys, why haven’t you eaten anything yet? And don’t give me that crap about how wrong it is because both juvie and Trent managed to eat their testicles. Now, eat so we can win this spa.”

At the words, “eat their testicles,” DJ shuttered. He usually wasn’t squeamish about stuff like this, but there was something different about this. It made him feel terrible, but he couldn’t do it. “I’m sorry, Heather. But it’s not going to happen. But hey, Bridgette hasn’t touched hers yet, and I don’t think she’s going to. They might not get this point either.”

“DJ! No!” Heather gasped, lightly slamming a fist onto the table, “we need to win this spa. Now eat, or else.”

During this exchange, Geoff snuck another look at the other table. DJ was right. Bridgette hadn’t touched her plate yet, and it didn’t look like any of her teammates were doing anything to encourage her. Despite the fact that he hadn’t eaten any of his meatballs and DJ made it clear that he wouldn’t eat his, he felt the need to help her.

Geoff pushed himself up from the table and walked across the dining hall, sitting down next to Bridgette, “havin’ some trouble with the meat? It’s okay. Sometimes they remove the testicle for the health of the bull! You can do it.”

Bridgette glanced at him, “thanks, Geoff, but I’m not eating any meat today. Courtney said she would take care of it, and I trust her.”

“You sure?” Geoff asked, “because it’s really not that bad!”

“I’m sure,” Bridgette clipped. Why was Geoff trying to get her to eat meat? Firstly, he was on the other team. Secondly, he knew how important being a vegetarian was to her. They had talked about this before. She couldn’t understand why he would encourage her to compromise her beliefs for a challenge. They might not be together yet, but they were supposed to support each other. “I think it would be really bad.”

Shit, Geoff thought, rubbing the back of his neck. He had messed up again. Why did he always do that? He opened his mouth to apologize, but he felt someone standing over him. Looking behind him, he saw Heather, and she looked pissed. “Heather! Hey. What’s up?”

Heather placed a hand on her hip, “what’s up? Other blond one, what are you doing? Are you actually trying to help blonde one? You’re an idiot. Come back to our table and eat your food. I managed to get DJ to at least try a testicle, and I’m going to get you to try one too. Come. Now.”

Taking one last look at Bridgette, Geoff nodded and followed Heather back to their table. That didn’t turn out well for him at all.

Another minute passed before Courtney and Chris exited the kitchen. When they did, all eyes were on them. Neither said anything as Courtney walked back to her table. Once she sat down, she reached across the table, pulled Bridgette’s plate in front of her, and started eating. What? Those weren’t the rules! Each team member had to finish each dish!

“Uhm, what’s going on?” Heather asked, eying their host suspiciously, “why is Courtney eating Bridgette’s food?”

“It has come to my attention that forcing a vegetarian to eat meat is considered immoral,” Chris said, his voice dripping with disdain, “myself, Courtney, and the other producers have come to an agreement. Bridgette will not be required to eat anything with meat in it, as long as her dish gets eaten. Courtney has volunteered herself to eat her plates. Now, how are we doing with the meatballs?”

Heather’s jaw dropped, “Chris! That’s totally unfair! Why should blonde one get special treatment? If anyone deserves special treatment it’s me, for putting up with these useless teammates!”

“I understand how you might think that, Heather, but it is out of my hands,” Chris glared at Courtney before addressing the room again, “so, do we have a winner yet? Is everyone going to eat their testicles?”

“No,” DJ and Geoff said together, having decided that it wasn’t worth it. This was the first of nine dishes, and Courtney had already made it her mission to eat two full plates. They couldn’t compete with that. Heather gasped again and turned to glare at them, but neither cared too much.

“Oh, I get it. I wouldn’t be able to do it either. Hardest thing a man can do,” Chris goaded, “so, Courtney, have you finished that second plate?” She nodded. “Point one goes to Team Courtney! Don’t worry Team Heather, there’s still plenty of time to catch up.”

As Team Courtney celebrated their point, Chef served the next dish: jellyfish and grasshopper pizza. Once again, Courtney coached her team through this plate, everyone managing to finish it. While she didn’t eat much herself, Bridgette’s breathing techniques helped them force down their food, even if Trent had to step out once or twice. Bridgette even managed to eat the pizza slice, granted Courtney picked the toppings off for her. This time, it was Leshawna who couldn’t stomach it, causing another fight between her and Heather.

Three more dishes passed, and Chris decided it was time for a break. Several of the campers had already needed to throw up, and he could tell several more were close. This wouldn’t be fun if no one could eat anything because they were too sick. With the score at 3-2 favoring Team Courtney, Chris gave them ten minutes to get some air. The campers wasted no time going outside.

The campers who didn’t head straight to the bathrooms spread out on the dining hall porch. With all their teammates occupied, Bridgette and Courtney settled on steps. Across the porch, Heather was forcing her team to have a meeting regardless of the fact that more than one of them felt sick. The pair watched them for a minute, both glad not to be on Team Heather, before starting their own conversation.

“It’s feels so nice not to be in there anymore,” Bridgette sighed, leaning back against the step, “thank you for eating my meat for me. I can’t believe you got Chris to agree to that.”

“It was no problem,” Courtney waved a hand, “anything I can do to help. He was fighting me some, but I just explained to him how forcing a vegetarian to eat meat might be seen. The other producers were on my side the moment I mentioned my favorite L word. Lawsuit. Apparently, there’s already been some legal trouble. Shocker.”

Bridgette laughed, she could believe that, “well, thank you again. I think we can win this challenge because of that. As always, you’ve done a great a job leading us. I’m happy we got to be on the same team for this.”

“Me too,” Courtney smiled, placing her hand on Bridgette’s knee, “we lucked out big time. It’s the best three of us, at least in my opinion, Lindsay’s great, and every team needs a weak link. And Trent’s a much better weak link than any of those other gopher girls. I think they’ve been fighting the whole time. I wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

“Oh, I know!” Bridgette agreed, glancing at the other team again. Heather, Leshawna, and Gwen all looked varying degrees of angry, and their boys looked bored. After a moment of watching, Geoff caught her eye and rolled his, causing her to laugh. Then, Heather noticed he wasn’t paying attention and snapped her finger in front of his face, demanding him to focus on her again.

“God, she’s a tyrant. I can’t stand her,” Courtney said, also having watched that, “if she wants them to do what she says she has to be somewhat agreeable. Sure, sometimes I can be a little firm, and I tend to get frustrated when the guys do dumb shit, but I’m never outright mean to you.”

Bridgette turned back to her friend and smiled, “never, Court. You treated us well. We all treated each other well.”

Courtney nodded and squeezed Bridgette’s knee, “and that’s why we were the better team. Because we’re friends.”

Suddenly, Leshawna stomped down the steps, breaking up the team meeting and drawing Courtney and Bridgette’s attention. She looked like she was in a rush. She had made it a few meters away from the dining hall when Heather finally reacted, “hello, Leshawna, where do you think your going? We’re having a meeting here.”

Leshawna stopped and turned, “I think I’m going to the bathroom,” she shouted back, “something tells me you wouldn’t like it very much if I threw up on your shoes.” Then, she turned again and stormed off to the bathroom, Heather yelling after her.

“Leshawna, get back here!” Heather placed a hand on her hip, “I know you can hold it in for –” Her words died in her throat before doubling over, clutching her stomach. “You know what, I think I’m done here,” she said before taking the same path Leshawna did.

With the two biggest drivers of the meeting gone, Gwen, DJ, and Geoff decided it was over. Gwen sat on the opposite side of the steps, and Geoff took a seat next to Bridgette and DJ next to him.

“Dudes, this blows,” Geoff complained, “I hate my team. I miss y’all. They all suck.”

“We miss you, too,” Bridgette laughed, “looked like you were having quite the team meeting over there. How are things over on Team Heather?”

Collapsing onto the step behind him, Geoff groaned, “fuckin’ she’s the worst. Most of the time I like people, but she’s seriously harshing the vibe. I’m tryin’ to be positive, but, ugh, I can’t be. Deej, tell ‘em.”

DJ shook his head but did as Geoff asked, “I have to agree, but let’s not complain. How’s Team Court?”

Bridgette smiled and grabbed Courtney’s hand, “we’re good. We were just talking about how much we lucked out with our team. We have the best leader a team could ask for.” Then, she snuck a look at her best friend, happy to see her beaming.

“And I have the best team a leader could ask for,” Courtney squeezed Bridgette’s hand, “especially Bridgette.”

“That’s not true!” Bridgette denied. She turned back to Geoff and DJ, “that’s not true. Don’t listen to her! Court’s just being nice. I’m not even eating the meat! She’s doing it for me! And I’m not the one who’s silently suffering through each dish. Court might be our superstar, but it’s been Duncan who has been our number two. I just helped Lindsay with some breathing.”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “she’s being modest. You’ve helped so much with Lindsay, and you’re good for team morale. Besides, you’re my best friend. I wouldn’t want to be on a team without you. Like I said, I got the best two of us.” She looked over at DJ and Geoff. “Uh, no offense. You two are great, too.”

“None taken,” DJ laughed, “I get it. We’re just two random guys. We can’t compete with your best friend and boyfriend. It’d be weird if you didn’t think that.”

“If you say so,” Courtney said, “I’m sorry. You were a really great number two on the bass. If it weren’t for personal connections I’d want you the most. And, Geoff,” she considered her next words, “you know what, never mind.”

Knowing she was joking, Geoff gasped in mock offense and turned away from Courtney, “okay, Court, I see how it is. No love for ole Geoff here.” Then, he started laughing, not being able to keep up the fake anger, and turned back to Courtney, “where is the Duncster anyway?”

Courtney shrugged, “he said he had to do something real quick. I think he went to go throw up. He wasn’t looking very good.” She sighed and dropped Bridgette’s hand. “I should probably go check on him. Make sure he’s okay.”

“Probably?” Geoff asked, confusion present on his face, “Court! You should have just gone with him!”

“He didn’t ask me to go with him,” Courtney shrugged again, “I would have, but I don’t think he wants me to know he’s feeling poorly. Besides, no one wants others around when they’re sick.”

“What? That’s not true,” Geoff reached across Bridgette and clasped Courtney on the shoulder, “that’s, like, the thing they want most when they’re sick! Some comfort!”

Courtney shook his hand off, “you can’t comfort someone when they’re throwing up. There’s nothing you can do. I’d just be watching, and I really don’t want to do that. And I don’t think he wants that either. It would be _dis_ comforting for both of us. He’s probably done now, though, so I should go.” She stood up and took off towards the bathrooms, not waiting for any response.

It turned out she had perfect timing because, not 45 seconds after she left her friends, Courtney saw Duncan coming from the bathrooms. He was slumped over slightly and was walking slower than he normally did. She had no doubts that she had been correct about his whereabouts. That did not look like a boy who felt well. Then, he spotted her and tried his best to straighten up. She just laughed and waved him over to where they wouldn’t be standing in the middle of camp.

“What are you doing, babe?” Duncan asked once he reached her, draping an arm across her back. Right away, she noticed a tenseness in him that usually wasn’t there.

“Just looking for you,” Courtney glanced up at him and saw that his face was still a little pale. Not as pale as when he had left but still enough to cause concern. “Were you just throwing up?”

Duncan’s head whipped towards Courtney. She wasn’t supposed to know that! This challenge was affecting him more than he thought it would, and he didn’t want her to have to worry about him. It was time to deny. “What? Court, why would –” Then, he thought better of it. Nothing good could come from lying to her, and he didn’t want to have to fake for any longer. Nodding, he leaned into her, letting himself relax. “How’d you know?”

“Duncan, we’ve been spending all of our free time together for the past ten days. It wasn’t hard for me to see you weren’t okay.” Courtney explained, “you’re all tense, and you were pale and shaky when you left. You’re usually none of those things.” She set a hand on his cheek, “are you okay?”

“Yeah, I am,” Duncan sighed, “I just had to get all the shit out of my system. I should be good for the last four dishes. You don’t have to worry about me. But, Court, if you knew I was sick, why didn’t you just come with me? Why wait?”

Courtney let her hand fall from his cheek, “you didn’t ask me to come with you. Why would I have even gone with you at all? Geoff mentioned that, too.” She paused, thinking this over. “Is that a thing?”

“Is what a thing?” Duncan asked, “staying with someone who’s sick?” Courtney nodded. “Yeah, babe. It’s generally considered a nice thing to do. Did you not know that?”

Courtney looked at the ground, shaking her head, “no. What would I have even done? Just stand there and watch?”

Duncan laughed, brushing her side, “no, you would’ve, like, comforted me. You know, rub my back or something.”

“You would have wanted that?” Courtney looked back up at him, “from me? I don’t think I’d be very good at that. I wouldn’t have known what to do. It would have been awkward. I don’t think you would have wanted me there.”

“Like Hell I wouldn’t have wanted my beautiful girlfriend there,” Duncan removed his arm from around her back and grabbed her shoulders, “Court, you’re my favorite person here. You’re the _only_ one I’d want. I don’t understand why you don’t think you’d be able to do it. It’s just a gentle touch, and you’ve already got that down. Just touch me like you usually do. You’ve been comforted while you were sick before, right?”

“No, I haven’t,” Courtney admitted, causing Duncan to give her a look that was a mix between confusion and pity, “my parents taught me sickness was private and a show of weakness. That is wasn’t for others to see, and that I shouldn’t expect others to take care of me. That I had to learn how to do it myself.”

Her parents. Of course. Duncan’s confusion was replaced with bitter understanding as he let go of her shoulders and rewrapped his arm around her back, “how about we talk about this later, Princess? Let’s just go back to the dining hall now.” He started walking. “Just know that it’s nice to have someone take care of you. Remember when you had that concussion, and you wanted me there, like, the whole time? It’s like that.”

Courtney nodded. Duncan’s reaction told her this was another one of those what she always thought was normal was actually terrible and not at all normal things, and she knew he would hold her to talking about it later. She just let him lead her back to the dining hall and didn’t say anything else about it, trying to accept what he had said.

Once the ten minutes were up and everyone had gathered back at the dining hall, the challenge resumed. It was time for the last four dishes. The first three went by as smoothly as they could, Team Heather scoring two points and Team Courtney scoring one. This left the score tied with four points for both teams, meaning the final showdown would actually have some weight to it. Whichever team managed to finish their last dish would win the challenge.

Chef brought the platters out, sniggering as he did so. This dish might not be the most disgusting, but it was definitely the most shocking. The campers removed the lids and found something that resembled a hot dog. They knew they weren’t, though, and just waited for Chris to reveal what it actually was.

“Wow! It’s still tied up. We’re down to the last course in the challenge” Chris announced, “it’s delicious… dolphin wieners! Hot dogs made of dolphin!” The reactions were instant.

“No! That’s awful!” Bridgette covered her mouth with a hand as her eyes welled with tears, “that’s not okay. Chris. Dolphins are our friends!” She turned to Courtney. “Oh, please don’t eat mine. I can’t be part of this. Please, I know we might lose, but I can’t bear the thought of it! Please, Court.”

Courtney, who hadn’t yet picked up her first dolphin dog, nodded. Truthfully, she had qualms about eating it as well. Bull testicles and moldy vegetables were one thing, but dolphin meat was a whole different can of worms. It felt wrong. “Of course I won’t, Bridgette.” She glared at her host. “I have no problem sitting this one out.”

Chris just shrugged. He didn’t care what these campers thought was right or wrong. “Have it your way, as long as you don’t mind giving it up to the other team. I thought better of you, Courtney! For shame.”

At the other table, Heather smiled. Yes! They would win it! As long as everyone did what they were supposed to. However, her happiness soon turned into annoyance.

“I’m with ya, Bridge,” DJ said, “I’m not doing this either. It’s wrong.”

“DJ, no,” Heather hissed, narrowing her eyes at him, “you’re not wimping out of this.”

DJ shook his head. He wasn’t wimping out. He was taking a stand against something absolutely disgusting. Just the thought of those poor creatures dying for this made him want to throw up. And, even if it didn’t, he wouldn’t let his good friends lose out on the reward for something they were morally against. He didn’t want the reward and knew Geoff didn’t either. He felt no obligation to Heather or even Leshawna to want to win it for them. He did, however, feel an obligation to both Bridgette and Courtney, his good friends.

“Sorry, Heather, but it’s not happening.”

“What do you mean, it’s not happening?” Heather asked, “it is happening. Eat it now.”

“No,” DJ firmly said while Geoff stood up, “I’m not gonna eat it either,” he looked across at the other table, “for you, Bridge!”

Bridgette smiled. Was no one going to eat the dolphin? Since Courtney already said she wouldn’t do it, the rest of their teammates had decided they wouldn’t either. There was no reason to if they weren’t going to get the point. And, if DJ and Geoff weren’t going to do it, which meant the world to her, then the rest of Team Heather didn’t need to do it. Looking over at the other table, she saw all five dolphin dogs were untouched.

With things at an impasse, Chris knew he had to move on, “okay, enough! We’ll solve this by having an eat off. Whoever can drink the most shot glasses of fresh, delicious blended cockroach will be the winner. Each team will nominate a champion, and it will be sudden death. The first to puke is the one to lose. Teams, take a minute to decide. Then, we’ll get started.”

It didn’t take long for Leshawna to step up for Team Heather. It was no secret that Gwen, Geoff, and DJ didn’t care about winning the reward, and she knew none of them would have any desire to do well. That only left her and Heather, and she wasn’t putting the fate of this challenge in Heather’s hands. The queen bee had no arguments, thinking herself better than drinking blended cockroaches on national television.

Across the dining hall, Courtney was resigning herself to having to do it. This was going to be humiliating and life ruining, but, looking around at her teammates, she didn’t know who else it could be. Automatically, Bridgette the vegetarian, Trent and his weak stomach, and picky Lindsay were out. This only left her or Duncan, and he was all pale again. She couldn’t ask him to do this. Standing slowly, she gave her teammates a forced smile, “I’ve got it.”

“No you don’t,” Duncan grabbed her wrist. He couldn’t let her do this. This girl, the one he cared about so much, had tried so hard all summer to keep herself from doing anything potentially incriminating. Like drinking blended cockroaches. This whole challenge had been a stretch, but this was too far. “I’ll do it.”

“Duncan,” Courtney sighed, looking down at him, “no. I can do it. I have a strong stomach. You don’t. You already don’t look good.”

“I’m fine, Court,” Duncan stood up and let go of her wrist, “even if I wasn’t, which I am, I’m positive I can hold it in longer than whoever they choose. I know you can do, but do you want to? Babe, I’m not letting you drink blended cockroaches on national television. It’s not happening.”

Courtney considered this. She wanted so badly not to have to do this, and he was offering. It gave her an out. He looked confident, and she knew he wasn’t going to let this go without an argument. It was so sweet, too. She didn’t have it in her to tell him no. Still, she had to ask, “babe, are you sure?”

Duncan nodded, “let me save you the embarrassment. You already know I have no shame. It’ll be good. I’ll win this for us. For you.”

“Okay,” Courtney tried and failed to bite down a smile, “thank you.” She felt an unfamiliar sensation, and, for a split second, she thought it could be love. Knowing it was still way too soon for that, she shook that thought away. Every time he did anything even remotely nice, she would think about loving him. It was pathetic.

Instead of dwelling on it, she reached a hand down somewhere it had never been before: his butt. She wanted to show her appreciation in a way that had nothing to do with that L word. It caught him off guard, and his eyes widened as they snapped to hers. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. She just gave him a coy smile and winked, “you got it,” she said as she pushed him forward, getting a good handful as she did so.

Now that both teams had picked their champions, Chris banished everyone to Team Heather’s table. He would use the other for the challenge. Chef set it up, making a big show of blending the cockroaches and pouring the concoction into shot glasses. A trashcan was set on either side of the centerpiece for easy access. Then, Leshawna and Duncan took their places.

“Awesome. I can’t believe we’re actually going to do this,” Chris laughed, “remember, don’t puke! Now take your first shot.”

They did with grimaces on their faces. Wow, that was not pleasant. However, they both knew they couldn’t give up, so they kept drinking as Chris demanded. Their teammates shouted their encouragement. Then, after four shots, Leshawna could no longer stomach it. Dropping her glass, she staggered to her trashcan, making it just in time.

Out of the corner of his eye, Duncan watched this. Was he good? He hoped so because he didn’t know how much longer he could keep it down. “Chris,” he called, “is it over?”

Chris nodded, freely laughing at the campers’ misfortune, “oh yeah. Team Courtney is officially the winner. Let it out if you need to!”

He needed to. Reaching forward, Duncan grabbed his trashcan with both hands and pulled it in front of him. Then, he closed his eyes and waited. It would be any second now. He didn’t have to wait long. With a groan, he submitted to the pressure in his stomach.

All of this was too much for most of the other campers to handle. They had been eating this terrible food all morning, and now they had to watch other people throw it up. Nope. With one exception, each camper fled the dining hall, most looking for their own place to vomit. Chris and Chef also left. They didn’t want to see this. Chris could announce the reward over the PA system.

Courtney was that exception. She meant it when she said she had an iron stomach, and she didn’t want to leave Duncan here. Remembering their conversation from earlier, she crossed the space between them, stopping right behind him. He had said that just a gentle touch would be enough comfort, so she hesitantly patted him on the shoulder. Almost immediately, she felt some of the tension leave his body. That had to be a good sign.

This continued for several more minutes, during which Courtney closed her eyes. She had no problem being here for him, but she wasn’t going to watch. Between waves of nausea, Duncan turned his head towards her, “Court,” he choked out, causing her to open her eyes. He looked awful. She needed to do more.

Courtney nodded as he turned back to trashcan, letting more junk out of his body. She took a small step closer and stuck an arm under his shirt to rub his back. Then, she reached her other arm around his torso. One of his hand let go of the trashcan and found hers, and he interlocked their fingers. Growing more comfortable with the comforting, Courtney’s hand on his back moved to his front, and she rubbed his chest. She pressed her cheek into his shoulder blade and hummed some random sonata. She didn’t know what to say, so she hoped this would do.

A few more minutes passed before Duncan finally finished. After wiping his mouth with his sleeve, he turned in Courtney’s arms and wrapped his around her. “Thank you so much,” he murmured.

“You’re welcome,” Courtney lifted her head from his shoulder and brushed a hand up and down his back, “are you feeling better?”

“Yeah, loads. For someone who claims she doesn’t know how to comfort people, you did an awesome job at it. You helped so much,” Duncan said, “but how are you? Do you feel sick at all?”

Courtney smiled at him, “good. I’m glad you’re good. And don’t worry about me.”

Duncan laughed, “okay, but if you start to feel sick, let me know.” She nodded even though she knew she definitely would not let him know. It wasn’t horrible being here for him, but it would be horrible if their roles were reversed. It didn’t matter that she knew her parents had been wrong. It would still be embarrassing. Accepting her nod, he moved on. “Babe, I can’t explain how grateful I am for you being here for that. I wanna kiss you so badly.”

“Please don’t,” Courtney pulled away from him and grabbed his hand instead, “we’ll have plenty of time for that later. After you brush your teeth, and I brush my teeth, and there isn’t the smell of vomit in the air.” She started walking. “Come on. You need to pack for the reward.”

Then, the couple left the dining hall. No one else was around, so, as they walked towards the cabins, Duncan quipped, “hey, you think you could grab my ass again? That’d really help me feel better.” Courtney shook her head as she laughed. She had been waiting for him to bring that up.

After dropping Duncan off at his cabin, Courtney swung by her new one to pick up Bridgette, and they headed to the dock. Since they didn’t have the chance earlier to unpack, they decided it would be easier to just bring their whole bags with them. Instead of sitting in the cabin, whether their new one or the guys’, they were taking this chance to get some fresh air. It was much needed after that challenge.

“I never want to do anything like that ever again,” Courtney leaned back onto her forearms, trying to find a position that relieved her aching stomach. She’d felt fine during the challenge, but, now that the food had a chance to sit, she felt absolutely sick. “That was the grossest thing I’ve ever had to do. I won’t be eating again any time soon.”

“I know. It was disgusting,” Bridgette turned, sitting with her legs crossed, and faced her friend, “and no one ate as much as you did. I don’t know how you did it. Thank you again, by the way, for not letting me eat any meat.”

Courtney’s mouth twitched upwards, but it wasn’t a smile, “of course. It wasn’t even a question. I would have rather lost the spa than make you compromise your beliefs. I’m just glad it worked out.”

“Me too,” Bridgette smiled before noticing the light sheen of sweat on Courtney’s forehead and her pained expression, “hey, Court, are you okay?”

“What?” Courtney asked, pushing herself up. Right away, she had to take a moment, breathing out slowly. Too fast. “Yes. I’m fine. I just think the challenge is catching up to me. I’ll be fine in a few minutes.”

“You sure? It’s okay if you’re not fine. You and I are the only two who weren’t sick after the challenge, and you have the most reason to be. You ate most of my food.”

Closing her eyes, Courtney nodded, “I’m sure. I just need to sit for a bit. I told you, I have a strong stomach.”

Bridgette shook her head, “no one’s stomach is that strong. Besides, you hardly ever eat anything. I’m pretty sure the last real meal you had was when Duncan stole all that food for you. An empty stomach can’t handle being full again so quickly, especially not with the food we were served today. It’s okay if you have to throw up. You’ll probably feel better.”

“I feel fine,” Courtney snapped before wincing and clutching her stomach. Maybe she didn’t feel fine. “Okay, so I don’t. But I’m not going to vomit. I forbid it.”

“You can’t forbid it, babe,” Bridgette laughed, “if it happens, you won’t be able to control it. It’s an involuntary reaction, and I know you know that.”

Courtney sighed, breathing out slowly. All this talk only made her feel worse, but she wouldn’t succumb to it. “Can we talk about anything else, please? If you want me to feel better then get my mind off it.”

Stifling a laugh, Bridgette nodded. If Courtney wouldn’t admit just how poorly she felt, she didn’t know what else she could do.

“Whatever you need. So, poor DJ and Ge–” she started, but was interrupted by a new arrival. Bridgette looked to her left and saw Trent standing over them. “Oh, hello, Trent. How are you? Ready for this reward?”

Trent nodded, setting his bag down next to him, “I’m alright. Happy to have that challenge behind me. This reward better be sweet because I don’t know if it was worth it. I threw up for like twenty minute.” He laughed and motioned towards Courtney. “I don’t know how you did it. I would had been so sick if I were you. Well, sicker than I was.”

Courtney only offered a tight lipped smile. Then, her stomach lurched, and she could feel everything coming up. No. This wasn’t supposed to happen. She pushed it down for the time being, but she knew it wouldn’t last. “If you’ll excuse me,” she hastily stood, “I need to use the bathroom.” Then, she hurried away toward the communal baths.

“Is she okay?” Trent asked, turning back to Bridgette, an alarmed expression on his face.

Pulling over Courtney’s suitcase to look for her toothbrush, Bridgette nodded, “she’ll be fine.”

As Courtney all but ran across camp, she didn’t pay attention to her surroundings. She was too focused on making it to the bathroom. No one could see the pathetic display of weakness that was about to come. Suddenly, a pair of arms grabbed her and pulled her to their chest. No. There wasn’t enough time for this. She looked up and found Duncan. No. That was the absolute worst person to see her like this. She’d rather throw up in front of _Heather_.

“Where are you running off to, Princess?” Duncan asked, wrapping her up in a hug, “might want to slow down some. Besides, you’re going the wrong direction. Dock’s behind you.”

“Nowhere,” Courtney groaned, “Duncan.” She clutched his shoulder with one hand, squeezing hard as she tried to force the bile back down.

Being able to tell something was off, Duncan unwrapped his arms from around her and took her in. She sounded and looked uncomfortable, and her face was glistening with sweat. If he had to guess, their challenge was about to make a reappearance. “Baby, are you okay?”

Courtney nodded, but her eyes shut, and her forehead came to rest on his opposite shoulder, “I’m fine. Please, just go to the dock.” Her fingernails dug into his shoulder as she trembled before letting go and curling her fingers around his wrist. It was coming now. She pulled him to the closest bush, bent over, and emptied her stomach.

While that happened, Duncan let his bag fall to the ground behind them. He knew this sucked for her, having already been in this position twice today, and wanted to do something to comfort her. Especially since he knew she had issues with this. He had to show her how nice some comfort could be. With his free hand, he reached up and grabbed her hair, pulling it out of the way. He wanted to rub her back with the other but couldn’t with her holding onto his wrist. “Baby, you’re okay,” He whispered, “Let it out.”

When she finished for the time being, Courtney sunk down to her knees, pulling him with her. Once they were on the ground, she turned and buried her head in the crook of his neck. One of the spikes on his dog collar pressed into her cheek, but she didn’t care. The discomfort she felt from that wasn’t even close to the utter embarrassment she felt from vomiting in front of him. She released his wrist, allowing his arms to wrap around her. One hand stroked the back of her head and the other rubbed her back as he repeated his question from earlier, “baby, are you okay?”

“No,” Courtney’s eyes filled with tears, “I was just sick in front of you, and I’m not even done.” She wrapped her arms around him. “Go away. I don’t want you to see me do that again. Please.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Duncan whispered, kissing the top of her head, “not until you do. I’m not going to leave you here by yourself when you’re sick. Remember, we all want comfort. But, do you maybe want to go to the bathroom? Get some privacy?”

Courtney shook her head into his neck, “I just want to sit here. I don’t feel well. Please can you leave? Let me wallow in my misery by myself. I don’t want you to see me like this.”

“No, baby, I can’t leave,” Duncan sighed, “think of this as me returning the favor.”

“But this is so gross,” Courtney cried, tightening her grip on him. If she wasn’t sick, he would had laughed. “You won’t want to be my boyfriend anymore.”

Understanding flashed through Duncan’s mind, and it pulled at his heart. Her issue was so much more than not understanding comfort. She thought he wouldn’t like her anymore if he saw her get sick. What a terrible and untrue thought. He didn’t think there was anything she could that would make him not like her, and she needed to know that. He liked her so much, and a little vulnerability wasn’t going to change that. Hell, if he didn’t already, and sometimes he thought he did, he was close to loving her.

“Courtney, do you think I’m going to break up with you because of this?” He felt her shrug, then nod. Her tears were making his neck, his dog collar, his shirt wet. They needed to stop. Pressing her closer, he said in a quiet voice, “honey. No. I’m not. Let me take care of you. You don’t have to do it yourself.”

“Really?” Courtney pulled her head out of his neck and looked at him. She wanted to believe him. He was right, him just holding her unfortunately did a lot to comfort her. Her eyes were red, and there was an angry red mark on her cheek from where his dog collar poked into it. Even with that, she looked hopeful.

Duncan laughed, “yes, really. It’s going to take a lot more than throwing up to get rid of me. Promise.”

Courtney’s mouth twisted into a smile before it fell off her face. It was coming again and they both knew it. She turned in his arms and threw up again. Duncan quickly gathered her hair with one hand and continued rubbing her back with the other. This sucked for her, and he wanted to give her any comfort he could. “Shh, it’s okay. I’m here, Court. I’m not going anywhere.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was Brunch of Disgustingness! The next two chapters will follow the campers at reward and the campers stuck at Wawankwa. I haven't started either, but it shouldn't take as long as this one did. They'll both set things up going into the merge. I've very excited.
> 
> As always, let me know if you enjoyed it! Leave a kudos or a comment if that's your style! Thank you to everyone who has left kudos and commented. Also, that you to whoever left me that kind review on my tumblr! If you want any updates or just want to see my thoughts, check me out at i-wish-i-was-kidding.tumblr.com.


	12. New Discoveries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Here are the campers on reward. This chapter is a little different, as there is no real game talk during it. The first bit is mostly fluff, and the second bit introduces a new plot line that has always kind of been there. Hopefully, the break from the island is well liked. Enjoy!

Courtney sat in front of the giant mirror, the contents of her makeup bag strewn out on the floor around her. Finally, she had a chance to relax. The reward that they had won was nicer than she had expected it to be. It was a two-night cruise around Lake Muskoka that doubled as a resort, and, while it had only been two hours, she already knew it was going to be superb.

The first hour was spent getting acquainted with the ship, its layout, and the safety features before being shown to her room. Her private room, which might be what she was most excited for. Each room had a bathroom en suite and a king-sized bed, and she had wasted no time taking a shower. It had been perfect, and she finally felt clean. Now, she was taking the opportunity to actually do her makeup, a luxury she had abandoned several weeks ago.

Looking around for her brown liquid eyeliner, she found it and leaned towards the mirror, concentrating hard. She was out of practice and didn’t want to mess it up. Her gold eyeshadow was subtle, but it brought out her eye in the loveliest way. As she applied the eyeliner, adding the tiniest of wings, there was a knock on the door.

Not knowing who it was, Courtney put the liner down, stood up, and walked over to the door. It could be anyone except Trent, but she hoped for Lindsay or Bridgette. Duncan didn’t need to watch her do this, it wouldn’t be fun for him. She looked through the peephole and was relieved to find both blondes on the other side. She opened the door and stepped aside, letting them in.

“Cooooouurrrrrt,” Lindsay greeted, stretching out the word. She breezed past Courtney and made herself comfortable in the middle of her bed, laying on her stomach with her legs in the air. “Can we hang out with you?”

Courtney smiled, sharing an amused look with Bridgette before turning to Lindsay, “I think you’ve already decided that you are. But, yes. That would be nice.”

“Yay! We just wanted to see what you were doing,” Lindsay propped herself up on her elbows and looked around the room, “are you doing your makeup? That’s so fun! Let me see.”

“Okay, I guess,” Courtney, along with Bridgette, walked back into the main area of the room. Bridgette mimicked Lindsay’s position on Courtney’s bed, and the CIT stood in front of them. Her eye makeup was half-finished, only one of her eyes lined with brown, but that didn’t stop Lindsay from squealing.

“Court! That looks so good! I love the gold!” Lindsay took a moment to look Courtney up and down. She was wearing light wash skinny jeans with a loose-fitting red sweater. It fit her well. “And, wow! You’re so hot. Those jeans look so good on you. Spin around for me!”

Laughing, Courtney did as Lindsay requested, “like this?” she asked once she completed the spin.

Lindsay nodded, clasping her hands together, “your ass looks fantastic. Bridge, tell her.”

“Your ass looks fantastic,” Bridgette agreed with a laugh, “really, Court, she’s right. You always look great; I don’t know if I’ve ever told you that before. Duncan’s going to lose his mind.”

“That is the objective,” Courtney picked up a hand mirror and her eyeliner and walked over to the bed, nudging Lindsay over so that she could sit between them. She held out the mirror, “someone hold this.” Bridgette took it, so she turned to face her. “Do you think it’s too much?”

Bridgette shook her head, “absolutely I don’t. What’s the occasion?”

“There really isn’t one,” Courtney shrugged, “a closed door, maybe. A nice shower? I don’t know, I just felt like doing it.” She was quiet as she put the final touches on the wings before looking over her shoulder. “Lindsay, what do you think? You’re the one who does her makeup regularly. Does it look terrible?”

“I think it’s beautiful,” Lindsay flipped over to her back so that she could sit up, “Court, your eyes are… wow. They’re popping! Do you have mascara?” Courtney pointed to the mess on her floor, and Lindsay jumped off the bed. She found a dark brown one and handed it to Courtney. “This one. So, have you and Duncan done it yet?”

It took Courtney everything she had not to drop the mascara. Did she really just ask that? Turning slowly and ignoring Bridgette’s loud laughs, she faced Lindsay. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Have you and Duncan, you know, done _it_ yet? You know, S-E-X?” Lindsay repeated, shooting Bridgette a curious look. She hadn’t thought her question was funny, and she didn’t know why she was laughing so hard.

“What? No! Of course, we haven’t!” Courtney yelped, wishing for the bed to swallow her up, “Lindsay, why would you ask that? Why does it even matter? No. We haven’t done, uhm, that. We’re not… no.”

Lindsay shrugged, confused about why Courtney was so flustered about this. It was just girl talk. “It doesn’t matter! I just thought it would be something fun to talk about. I love hearing about my girlfriends’ love lives, and I haven’t gotten to all summer! You and Duncan are the only real couple on the island, you’re my only source. So, you haven’t done it, and that’s cool. How far have you gone? Please tell me. I’m so hungry for it.”

Courtney closed her eyes as she thought it over. As much as this wasn’t anyone else’s business, she had to admit that talking about it with someone she trusted was alluring. Outside of discussing their first kiss with Bridgette, the only person she had talked about this with was, well, Duncan, but that was mostly just them telling each other how awesome it was. They never talked about pushing it further, but there were a few things she was interested in just knowing more about. This was what friends were for, right?

“We’ve only made out some,” Courtney admitted, looking down at her lap, “nothing too exciting.”

Lindsay smiled, this was a great start, but she wanted more, “tell me about it! Is it hot? Wait! Does he have a tongue ring? I bet he does. I bet _that’s_ super-hot!” She grabbed Courtney by the shoulders, leaning towards her. “Do you ever, you know, touch each other? Like on places where maybe I couldn’t touch you?”

Taken a bit aback by how into this Lindsay was, Courtney glanced over her shoulder at Bridgette. She looked just as curious as Lindsay sounded. They actually wanted to know about this. They wanted to know about her and her relationship, which didn’t feel nearly as invasive as she thought maybe it should be. She turned back to Lindsay, ready to talk.

“He does, and I like it a lot. It feels amazing. The tongue ring, I mean! We don’t, I mean, we haven’t, I, uh, touched his, well, behind earlier today, but that was the first time. He said he liked it, though, and I was planning on, uhm, letting him touch me there later. And, uhm.” She motioned a hand above her breasts, “here. I like feeling his skin against mine, but I hardly ever get to enjoy it. Only when we’re sleeping. I was going to, uhm, well, there’s a reason my sweater is so loose. It’s easy to get off.”

“Court! Yes! What does your bra look like?” Lindsay exclaimed while Bridgette burst into a fit of giggles, “wow, Court, I’m a little jealous. You usually shut down this kind of conversation right away. I think you like Lindsay better than me.”

“Maybe I do,” Courtney laughed, addressing Bridgette first, “she doesn’t make fun of me as much as you do. I appreciate that.” Then, she turned to Lindsay, “it’s just red. I think it looks nice on me.”

Lindsay let go of Courtney’s shoulders, pushing her off the bed, “let’s see it!”                                                                                                                                                                            

Courtney’s jaw dropped. Did Lindsay just tell her to take off her top? She had no problem doing it, having changed in front of Bridgette many times, but she was stunned by how candidly she had said it. “Oh, uhm, okay.” She pulled her sweater off and set it on her bed, showing them her red bra. There was a heart charm between her breasts. She crossed an arm over her stomach and rubbed her arm as they examined her.

“Court! You’re, like, hot. Like, capital H-O-T hot,” Lindsay hopped off the bed and grabbed Courtney’s arms, “like, I knew you had a tight ass and, like, perfect legs, but you’re so perky! Your curves are in all the right places.”

Courtney nodded, trying to feel comfortable with Lindsay’s intense eye contact and praise. This wasn’t something she was used to. Sure, Duncan told her she looked good all the time, but he never went into this much detail. It felt nice, but it was a lot. “Thanks, I guess.”

“It’s no problem! Just telling you what I see,” Lindsay moved her hands up to her hair and felt the still curly locks, “what are you doing with your hair? I didn’t know it was curly! Do you straighten it every day?”

“I don’t know yet,” Courtney ran a hand through her hair, “I thought I might leave it. It needs a rest. Can I put my sweater back on now?”

“You should wear it curly! It’s so pretty!” Lindsay fluffed her hair one last time before walking back to the bed and handing her the top.

Just like that, they moved on, something Courtney was slightly relieved about. They spent the next hour talking about seemingly random things, Courtney slowly finishing up her makeup. They had a mandatory meeting at 2:30 about the itinerary for the next two days.

They left Courtney’s room around 2:20 and headed for the lounge. When they got there, they saw that Duncan and Trent had beaten them there. The lounge looked comfortable, much like the rest of the ship, and there were trays filled with different fruits, cheeses, and crackers on the coffee table. Trent was sitting on a large couch, and Duncan had an armchair for himself, though his expression made it clear he expected Courtney to squeeze in next to him.

“Hi,” Courtney murmured once she reached him, enjoying the way he took her in. His gaze wasn’t leering but appreciative and a little stunned, exactly like she had wanted. “Can I sit?”

Duncan grinned, patting his thigh, “got a seat right here for you, babe.” Courtney laughed as she climbed onto the arm of the chair, her legs stretching out across his lap. He placed one hand on her thigh and the other rubbed her shins. “I’m really liking this look. Red’s hot on you.”

Courtney grabbed the hand on her thigh and laced their fingers together, “thank you. Come to my room after?”

“Yeah,” Duncan nodded, having a pretty good idea of what she had in mind, “I believe you said I could kiss you after we were all clean?” Courtney rolled her eyes at him but brought her other hand up to sandwich his between hers. He hadn’t gotten it wrong.

“Did I? Guess we’ll have to do that, then,” Courtney unlaced their fingers, straightening them out and tracing his down to his palm. Her other hand continued holding the back of his.

Fuck. Duncan wished he could just kiss her right now, but he didn’t want to in front of everyone else. While Bridgette looked slightly bored sitting on the couch, both Trent and Lindsay were watching them with different levels of interest. Trent looked bemused, and Lindsay’s eyes were wide and soft. That wasn’t unsettling.

Refocusing on his girlfriend, Duncan wrung his hand around her shin and whispered, “can’t wait ‘til we’re alone.”

Courtney nodded, returning her hand to his, but didn’t reply. A sixth person had joined them in the lounge, and she assumed it was the director of the cruise. The person standing at the front of the room was a lady in her mid-thirties with short, blonde hair, and she was holding a clipboard. It was time to listen.

The woman introduced herself as May, and she was, indeed, the activities director. She went over the schedule for the next two and a half days, when they would eat and when they would have spa treatments. The guys and girls would be separated, and there wouldn’t be any until tomorrow. The rest of the day was to be spent relaxing. She reminded them of the rules and safety regulations one more time before letting them go to do whatever they wanted.

Without saying goodbye to anyone on the couch, Duncan stood up, bringing Courtney with him. The whole time the director was talking, she played with his hand, and she still didn’t let go of it now. Pulling his arm over her shoulder, she walked in front of him, leading him to her room. They both knew what was going to happen once they got there, Courtney better than Duncan, and they were both excited for it.

The trip didn’t take long, but they walked in relaxed silence. There was nothing to talk about. When they got there, Courtney finally let go of his hand so that she could unlocked the door. She held it opened, and they both went inside.

The door closed behind them, and Duncan pushed Courtney against it. One hand braced the door behind her, and the other found her hip, his fingers brushing the skin under her sweater. He rested his forehead on hers for a long moment before leaning down and kissing her. Tasting her cherry lip gloss, he sucked lightly on her upper lip, eliciting a gasp. She curled a hand around his bicep and ran the other down his back before settling on his ass, gently massaging it.

“Fuck, Court,” Duncan moaned against her mouth, his hand moving to tangle itself in her curls, “feels so good.”

“Yeah?” she laughed, giving him a squeeze. He just moaned again, pressing himself closer to her.

After another minute, Courtney pulled away, dragging her hand up his back and pushing against his arm. Duncan groaned but straightened himself up. Then, he took her hand and led her to her bed, sitting down on the edge of it. He grabbed her by the hips and pulled her between his legs as his eyes travelled her body once again, “you’re a fucking smoke show, babe. Absolutely gorgeous.”

Courtney giggled, wiggling out of his grasp and taking a few steps back, “want me to spin for you? I can.” Duncan’s only reaction was his eyes widening, so she took that as a yes. Making sure their eyes stayed locked as best they could, she spun twice, still giggling.

By the time she was done with the second spin, Duncan had crossed the space between them. He took her face in his hands and leaned in, capturing her lips with his. The kiss was slow and smooth, and he was deliberately taking his time with it, wanting to savor it. As it went on, Courtney set one hand his chest, her fingers winding around the fabric of his shirt, and the other on his shoulder blade.

Finally, he pulled away and looked at her. His hands dropped down to her shoulders before following the curve of her body down to her hips. They creeped towards her behind, but he had to ask, “Court, can I?”

“You don’t need to ask, babe,” Courtney said with a smile, grabbing his hands and pulling them to where they both wanted them to be, “thought it was a given considering I already went there twice.”

“Just making sure,” Duncan’s hands explored her backside, rubbing as they moved up and down, side to side.

She smiled as she laid her head on his shoulder, “this feels nice.” Then, he gave it a firm squeeze, much like she had done earlier, causing her to let out another gasp. She lifted her head and tilted it towards his, kissing him again.

Right away, Courtney stuck her tongue in his mouth, this kiss needier than the ones before it. Her tongue felt the hole in his tongue where his tongue ring usually was and briefly wondered where it was. Then, he gave her ass another squeeze, and she decided it didn’t matter. She had something more important to focus on: getting them in her bed and hopefully out of their tops. Pushing against his chest, she walked them to the foot of her bed.

Once they got there, Duncan took control, spinning them around and moving his hands to the back of her thighs. “Up,” he breathed, urging her to wrap her legs around him. She nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck and forcing herself up. He helped her legs find the right position until he was securly holding her. Then, he climbed onto her bed and crawled them over to the head of it without breaking the kiss. Making sure he wasn’t putting all his weight on her, he laid them down.

As much as she was enjoying this, which was a whole lot, Courtney needed to stop them. She needed to feel his skin against hers. “Wait,” she breathlessly said, placing a palm on his chest.

“You okay?” Duncan asked, wasting no time sitting up on her thighs. He looked down at her with concern, and, if she wasn’t breathing so heavily, she would have laughed.

Courtney nodded and sat up with him as she tried to catch her breath, “shoes… we need to take them off.”

“Okay,” Duncan agreed, nodding slightly as he went back to the edge of the bed. He unlaced his converse while Courtney pulled off her black wedges and dropped them over the side. She saddled up behind him and waited for him to finish, wrapping an arm around him. When he had them off, he turned his head towards her, “we good now?’

“No,” Courtney shook her head, and this time she did laugh as worry flashed through his eyes, “I want you to take off your shirt. I want to touch your skin.”

After processing her request and realizing that she was fine, Duncan laughed with her. She wanted his shirt off, and that was something he could easily provide. It wasn’t even surprising considering she stuck an arm under it any chance she got. “Take it off, then,” he pulled her hand down to the hem of his shirt, “you want it off, you take it off.”

“I take it off,” Courtney repeated, doing just that. She worked quickly to get his plain black shirt over his head before tossing it to the corner of the bed. One down, one to go.

“Anything else, Princess?” Duncan looked at her with teasing eyes, “or can we get back to kissing?”

“One more thing,” Courtney scooted half a meter back and grabbed the hem of her sweater, pulling it up.

Duncan’s eyes snapped to her hands and watched them move up. He wanted to stop her and do it himself, but it was almost as if his brain had shut down. Was she really taking her top off? The sweater passed over her breasts, and he found himself staring. They were perfect. He wanted to reach out and touch them, but he was thankfully still out of it. He didn’t know if that was part of the deal.

“Now we’re good,” Courtney’s voice brought him back down to earth, and his eyes flicked up to hers for a second before going back down to her breasts. They were right there. She just laughed, “or, I’m good. Are you?”

Duncan nodded, keeping his eyes where they were, “I’m way more than good. Shit, Court, could you give a guy some warning next time? You can’t just take your top off and except me not to react. Your breasts? Perfect. That bra? Hot.”

“You want to touch them?” Courtney asked, causing Duncan to look at her face again, his eyes wide, “come here. I believe you wanted to kiss some more?” She grabbed his wrist and guided his hand to her breast. “I’m not taking the bra off, but something tells me you don’t have a problem with that.”

“No problem at all,” Duncan spread his fingers out over her and pushed her onto her back. He nudged her legs apart with his knee before lying on top of her. Still palming her breast with one hand, he moved the other to stroke her cheek. Then, he kissed her.

His lips only stayed on hers for a minute before he started kissing down her neck towards her collarbone. She had given him all this uncovered skin to work with, and he was going to take full advantage of it. Her skin was warm against his, and he knew his skin was flushing red in a way hers wouldn’t. Looking for her sweet spot, he found it where her neck met her collar bone. Smiling to himself, he started sucking on the skin there.

Courtney’s hands settled on the back of his neck as she let out a low moan, “Duncan, that’s, oh.”

“You like that?” Duncan pulled away just enough to ask the question and look at her. Her eyes were shut tightly, and her mouth was parted slightly. She nodded frantically, trying to push him back down. He laughed and did what she wanted, licking the skin before biting down on it, which earned him another moan.

They continued this for the next hour, changing positions as needed. Like always, Courtney loved the feel of his skin against hers, and this time it was so much more intense. She didn’t ever want to go back to covered up kissing.

Duncan was trying very hard to keep his body from reacting how it wanted to react. His blood was running south, and he tried to focus on her hand on his shoulder. It was hard, though, with her on top of him now. She had successfully gotten his dog collar off and was currently kissing the skin that was usually hidden beneath it. She had found his spot just like he had found hers, and it felt great. His hands had returned to her butt, and he massaged it. Then, she bit his neck.

This caused Duncan to squeeze her ass and let out a growl, which caused Courtney to roll her hips, grinding down on a sensitive area. That did nothing to help his current situation, and he could feel himself start to get hard. No. That would be too far. They had to stop before she felt – “uhm, Duncan?” Shit.

Courtney sat up and scrambled off his lap, careful not to look at him, “was that what I think it is?”

“Shit. Yeah, sorry,” Duncan pushed himself up so that he was sitting next to her, but he didn’t touch her, “Court, I, fuck.” He closed his eyes and dragged a hand down his face. “We’ll stop now.”

“Yes, please,” Courtney braved a look at him. His face and upper chest were red and blotchy, and he looked almost embarrassed. She turned away again. “Sorry. I’m just, I’m sorry. I’m not ready for that yet. Sorry for… yeah.”

Duncan sighed, “Court, look at me.” She did, and he caught her eyes. “Don’t apologize, you’re fine. This was bound to happen at some point. You’re stupid hot, and we’ve been pushing things further. You’re good. We don’t need to do anything else. Do you want me to go?”

Courtney sat on this for a minute, looking down at their laps before realizing what was down there and looking back up. She had wanted to spend the entire afternoon with him, maybe even the rest of the day, but she didn’t want anything to be uncomfortable between them. But, would asking him to go only ensure things would even more uncomfortable later when they saw each other again? Probably. They couldn’t ignore it, and they probably needed to have a chat about where things were going. Plus, she really just wanted to hang out with him.

“No,” Courtney shook her head, “I want you to stay. Do you want to go?”

“No, I don’t want to go,” Duncan pushed himself out of the bed, “I want to stay, too.” He picked up his shirt and put in on before tossing Courtney hers. “I’m going to the bathroom. We’re both going to take a moment to cool down. Then, we can talk. Find something for us to do, okay?”

Courtney nodded, watching as he disappeared into the bathroom. Once the door was closed between them and she heard the water running, she laid back down, not bothering with her shirt. She flipped over to her stomach and buried her head in her pillow. So many firsts today, and it was close to being too much for her. Maybe she should have told him to go. The thought of talking about what just happened was overwhelming, and, even though they needed to, she didn’t want to. There was going to be so much tension.

The bathroom door opened, but she didn’t move. She didn’t want to look at him, which she knew was absolutely ridiculous. He was her boyfriend. It was a natural reaction. There wasn’t anything wrong with it. She heard Duncan sigh and felt him sit down next to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder, “Princess, you okay?”

The physical contact and her pet name relieved some of the awkwardness she felt, so she turned his head towards him. His face was back to its normal color, and his blue eyes were soft. They were nice to look at. “I don’t know.”

Duncan sighed again, “you wanna talk about it?”

“Not really,” Courtney rolled over to her side, “kind of. I don’t know.”

“Well, I do. Come on, Court, it’ll be good,” Duncan patted her shoulder, “get up. Put your sweater on. Let’s talk. And find something for us to do, ease the tension some.”

Courtney pushed herself up and pulled her sweater on, happy that he felt the tension too. Thinking about what they could do, she looked down at her hands. Then, she got it. They could paint their nails! Or, she could, and he hopefully wouldn’t mind watching.

“Do you mind if I paint my nails?” Courtney asked, climbing out of bed to get her bag of nail supplies.

Duncan smiled behind her back, “not at all. Actually, do you have black? I haven’t painted mine all summer, and I’m missing it a little.”

“You paint your nails?” Courtney looked over her shoulder, and he nodded, “are you good at it?” He nodded again. Courtney bit back a smile, trying not to get too excited, and turned back to her suitcase. She found what she was looking for and went back to her bed, taking her spot next to him. She dumped the bag out before turning to him, “can you paint mine, then? I’m not good at it. You can pick the color.”

“Hell yeah, I can paint yours,” Duncan picked up a glittery black polish, spun it between his hands, and opened it, setting the bottle carefully against a pillow, “give me your hand.” She held out her right hand, and he grabbed it. “We’re gonna look so badass, babe. Best lookin’ couple around.” He meticulously painted her nails, making sure none of the polish got on her fingers. “What are you thinking about?”

Courtney shrugged, “us, I guess. What just happened. I’m just, well, I’m a little freaked out. Not in a bad way or anything, but in an, uhm, excited way. I’ve never… this is my first relationship. I’m not uninterested in, uhm, maybe doing more with you, but, I just… What are you thinking about?”

Duncan squeezed her hand the best he could without messing up the polish, “the same. I’m not uninterested either, Court. We’re cool. There’s no rush. And, pretty soon we’re going to reach the point where our firsts are going to be with each other. It’s new for me, too. I haven’t done that many things either, more than you, but still not a lot. This is even my first proper relationship. You’re the first girl I’ve ever liked enough to call my girlfriend.”

“I am?” Courtney asked, giving him a shocked look. Duncan just nodded which caused her to smile. “I didn’t know that. So, uhm, what kind of stuff are you not uninterested in doing with me?” Duncan grinned at her as he launched into the various things they could do together, starting with the small stuff.

As he painted their nails, they had an honest conversation about their boundaries, putting firm limits on what they were and weren’t comfortable with. Ultimately, they decided that anything up to and including hand stuff was probably okay and that anything further would be revisited later. The lingering discomfort dissipated quickly, and things were soon back to normal.

The next three hours passed quickly for everyone. While Duncan and Courtney were enjoying each other’s company, Bridgette and Lindsay lounged around the former’s room, and Trent messed around on his guitar and figured out his next game move. Before long, it was time for dinner, and everyone met in the dining room, excited to see what they got to eat. They hadn’t had real food all day and a good meal in longer than that.

Dinner had been delicious, steak with a baked potato and asparagus. There was even a legitimate vegetarian option for Bridgette, who had been eating a lot of bread and fruit. They hadn’t thought things could get better, and then they brought out the dessert tray. It was beautiful and had three different options: a chocolate-raspberry cake, a strawberry cheesecake, and an angel food cake. Now, they were eating dessert and discussing their evening plans.

Lindsay was insisting that they all do something together to celebrate their win, and everyone agreed rather quickly. It was almost impossible to say no to her. Now, they were trying to find something that wouldn’t require too much effort. It had been a long day, and everyone wanted to relax.

“What if we watched a movie?” Bridgette suggested, “there’s a theater on the ship, and it’s something easy.”

“A movie?” Lindsay thought it over for a minute, taking a bite of her chocolate-raspberry cake, “that could work. Wait. Can we make it a pajama party? That would be so much fun! Please?”

Bridgette laughed, “I’m down with a pajama party if everyone else is. It would make going to bed after easier.”

“Yay! Oh, this is going to be so cozy. I’m excited!” Lindsay poked Courtney in the shoulder, “Court! Please say you want to do this! Please say you’ll wear your pajamas!”

Courtney nodded, agreeing to the movie and the pajamas. This prompted Duncan to also agree, and the couple planned on just going back to her room after for the night. That only left Trent, and he agreed mostly because he wanted to get a better feel of everyone’s dynamics. After everyone had agreed, they decided to meet in the theater in an hour. They said their goodbyes, and the guys and girls parted ways so that they could each get ready in their own room.

After bouncing in anticipation for legitimately 40 minutes, Lindsay knew it was time to get ready. She was excited for a night with her good friends and no Heather. Finding her yellow cats and dogs pajama set, her coziest pair, she put them on. Then, she fashioned her hair in a high pony and went to get Bridgette and Courtney. It was time!

She went to Bridgette’s door first and knocked. Thirty seconds later, the door opened. Bridgette was wearing navy blue pajamas pants with different sharks on them and an oversized orange sweatshirt. Instead of her signature ponytail, her hair was pulled back into pigtail Dutch braids.

“Bridge! Your pajamas are so cute!” Lindsay complimented, grabbing her shoulder, “and your hair! Are you ready? I’m ready.”

“Thanks, Linds,” Bridgette smiled as she stepped into the hallway, “you look really cute, too. You’re so yellow! And, yeah, I’m ready. Are we getting Court?”

Lindsay nodded, letting go of her shoulder and grabbing her hand, “yes! I want all of us to go together.” They walked to Courtney’s door, and Lindsay knocked. “I’ve already said this, like, one hundred times, but this is going to be so much fun! I’m so happy we’re doing this!”

“I know. You look really happy,” Bridgette squeezed Lindsay’s hand, “this is going to be fun.”

“So fun!” Lindsay knocked again, “I dunno what’s taking her so long. Like, this is long, right? She should have answered by now?”

“It’s been a minute, Linds,” Bridgette laughed, “be patient.”

Lindsay just sighed and knocked for a third time. This time, they heard a faint, “just a minute, please,” from the other side of the door. Great! Sure enough, after a minute, the door opened. Courtney looked exhausted in her black sweater and grey, black, and white stripped pajama pants. Her hair was disheveled, and she was rubbing her eyes.

“Were you just asleep?” Lindsay asked, her brows furrowing, “do you still want to watch a movie with us? Or are you too tired? It’s okay if you are. It’s just if you don’t come, then Duncan won’t come, and it’ll just be me and Bridge and Trent. Which, like, isn’t bad! I just wanted it to be everyone.”

“I wasn’t sleeping, Lindsay,” Courtney said. She even sounded tired. “Just lying down for a minute. I’m good. Let’s just go.”

Lindsay smiled, took Courtney’s hand with her free one, and they walked to the theater. Once again, the guys had beaten them there, and they were sprawled out on opposite ends of the double sectional. Pillows and blankets were scattered across the couch. Lindsay led them to the center of the couch before dropping their hands and sitting down.

While Bridgette took a seat next to Lindsay, Courtney curled up beside Duncan. He lifted an arm for her, and she laid her head on his shoulder. Despite what she had said earlier, she had dozed off while waiting for the movie plans to start. She couldn’t help it; she had been awake for so long. Hopefully, that short nap was enough and she would be able to stay awake for the movie.

Everyone there, Lindsay turned on the television, their many movie choices popping up on the screen. It was time for the hardest part: finding one movie that all five teens with vastly different tastes would be okay with. It took around twenty minutes, but they finally settled on Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Then, they started the movie.

Over the course of the first thirty minutes, most everyone was intently focused on the movie, not wanting to miss any important groundwork. However, there was one teen who couldn’t get into it.

Courtney was exhausted. It had been a long day, and now all she wanted to do was sleep. She had no idea what was happening in the movie, having been drifting in and out of sleep since it started. She didn’t want to fall asleep here, but it was getting harder and harder to stay awake. Duncan was comfortable, her head on his chest, and his arm around her. It felt safe, and it made her even more tired than she already was. She decided she didn’t care anymore. Breathing in his scent, she snuggled deeper into his side and let herself fall asleep.

Duncan, who was becoming more familiar with Courtney and her rhythms, knew the moment she fell asleep. Her breathing had slowed, and her weight had become dead. He had assumed she wasn’t actually watching the movie by the way her head fell from his shoulder to his chest and how she kept pressing herself closer, and this verified that.  

Smiling to himself, Duncan leaned down to kiss the top of her head. This felt so right, and he took a moment to relish that feeling. Today had been long, so he completely understood why Courtney was tired, but it had also been good. Even the challenge, which sucked, and the getting sick, which sucked even more, hadn’t been terrible. It couldn’t be with her next to him. Then, the sunrise that morning and the entire afternoon spent together had just been awesome. He wanted so badly to just be able to have a normal day with her, and this almost felt like one.

Maybe it was too soon, and maybe they didn’t know each other well enough yet, but he could see this lasting for a long time. There was no one, on the island or off it, that he liked better than her, and he didn’t see that changing. It had only been ten days since they’d started and five weeks since they’d met, but it felt so much longer than that. He felt like he’d known her for years. Pressing another kiss to her forehead, he turned back to the movie.

Before anyone knew it, the movie was over. Mr. and Mrs. Smith had rekindled their marriage, and the credits were rolling. Lindsay turned off the TV, and her, Bridgette, and Trent got ready to leave. Duncan wanted to wait for everyone else to go before he woke up Courtney. The three said goodbye and left for their rooms.

“Baby, you need to get up now,” Duncan whispered once they were gone, lightly shaking her. He watched as she slowly woke up and untangled herself from him. Then, she gave him a look that could only be described as pissed the fuck off. Duncan laughed, “movie’s over. Time for real bed.”

Despite her annoyed demeanor, Courtney nodded and sat up. Duncan got off the sectional before pulling her up and wrapping an arm around her. She melted right back into his side as he walked them to her room. “You slept almost the entire movie, babe. Someone’s tired.”

Courtney shot him a half-hearted glare, “someone woke me up at 5:15 this morning. I think it’s warranted.”

“So, you’re saying this is my fault, huh?” Duncan joked, brushing her side, “okay, Princess, maybe I just won’t bother with a date next time.”

“Shut up,” Courtney mumbled, “I just want to go to bed.”

“Think we can arrange that,” Duncan turned his head and kissed her temple. The couple walked the rest of the way to her room in silence. She was exhausted, and he knew she wouldn’t want to carry any kind of conversation.

When they got to her room, they got ready for bed. Courtney took the bathroom first to do her nighttime routine, not taking nearly enough care as she usually did. Her face didn’t need to be perfectly washed every night. When she finished, Duncan traded places with her, and she changed into a lighter pajama set. Then, she finally got to crawl into her bed and under the covers. Instead of falling right asleep, which was tempting, she waited for Duncan.

Duncan exited the bathroom and found that Courtney had the covers pulled up all the way to her chin, causing him to smile. He shed his shirt, throwing it on the armchair. “Hey, babe, mind if I sleep in just my boxers tonight?”

“You can do whatever you want,” Courtney said, “I don’t care.”

“You don’t mean that, but okay,” Duncan pulled his sweatpants off and joined his girlfriend in bed. She was lying on her side facing him, and he tried to pull her to his chest, but she wasn’t having it. “Court, come here.”

Courtney shook her head, “turn around. I want to hold you tonight. I never get to hold you. You always get to hold me. It’s my turn.”

Duncan laughed, doing what she asked. He would happily be the little spoon for a night if that’s what she wanted. Plus, it felt nice when Courtney wrapped an arm and a leg around him and pressed herself into his back.

“Goodnight, Princess,” he wished, resting his arm on top of her. She didn’t say anything, but he felt her nod into the back of his head. Then, her breathing slowed, and she was asleep. He followed quickly after.

The morning came, and everyone met back in the dining room for breakfast. May, the activities director, joined them and outlined their day. There were going to be three spa treatments: one before lunch, one right after, and the last around 4:30, after their afternoon snack. Dinner was going to be late, around 7:30, and it was a cookout. The first treatment was right after breakfast, a two-in-one facial and mud bath.

They finished their breakfasts and were sent off to change into their complimentary swimsuits. The girls were assigned the first spa room, and they chatted the entire time. The guys were assigned the second spa room, and neither Trent nor Duncan said a single word to each other. It was relaxing for all of them.

After that, they were given some free time before lunch. It started with everyone in the pool, but it didn’t last long. First, Duncan and Courtney ditched to go be alone. Then, Trent left because he really didn’t know what he could talk to Bridgette or Lindsay about. That just left Lindsay and Bridgette. Lindsay got out of the pool to sunbathe and watched as Bridgette swim laps.

The next several hours passed without incident, which included lunch. Then, it was time for their second spa treatment: a massage. Three of the teens were excited for it, one wanted to be, and one planned on skipping out altogether, this not being their thing. They got ready before going where they needed to be.

The massage therapist’s hands roamed further down Bridgette’s back. She could hear Lindsay chattering on about something, but she couldn’t pay any attention to it. All she could think about was how uncomfortable she felt. This was supposed to be relaxing, but it wasn’t. The facial and mud bath hadn’t been bad, but this was different. She didn’t like people she didn’t know touching her, especially not like this. Mumbling a quick apology to her massage therapist, she pulled her clothes back on and bolted towards the deck. She needed some fresh air.

Bridgette made it to the deck and grabbed the railing. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and counted to ten. She took these moments to enjoy the smell of the lake and the nice, if not a little aggressive, breeze. _This_ was what she needed to relax, not some massage. She was so eager to get out there that she failed to notice she wasn’t alone.

Someone cleared their throat, and Bridgette’s eyes snapped open. Who else was out here? Everyone was supposed to be getting their massage right now. Looking around the deck, she found Duncan leaning against the wall next to the door. She had walked right past him. Knowing that he had been spotted, he joined her at the bow.

“Sup?” Duncan greeted once he reached her.

Bridgette looked at him, “nothing, really. Aren’t you supposed to be getting a massage right now?”

“Aren’t you?” Duncan shot back, causing Bridgette to look back at the lake, “that’s what I thought. I never went. I’ve had too many sports massages to enjoy one for pleasure. You?”

“I just didn’t like it,” Bridgette shrugged, “It was kind of uncomfortable. I think I don’t like being touched by people I don’t know.” She paused for a moment. Then, “what sports do you play?”

“Soccer.”

Cool. One-word answers. How was she expected to respond to that? She didn’t know anything about soccer! After thinking about it for a second, she said the only thing she could think of, “Courtney plays soccer, too.”

Duncan laughed, “I know.”

Bridgette covered her face with a hand. Of course he knew Courtney played soccer. They were together and had probably talked about it before. They’d probably talked about a lot of things before. Hell, he probably knew more about her than she did, which was not a thought Bridgette wanted to dwell on. Why had she said that? Because she hadn’t known what else say to him. Sure, they were former teammates and current alliance mates and had all the same friends, but they were probably the two in their group that talked the least to each other. They had nothing in common! Except, apparently, knowing stuff about Courtney.

“Right, sorry. I don’t know why you wouldn’t know that,” Bridgette apologized, “you’re together all the time. I’m sure you know her entire life by now.”

“We’re getting there,” Duncan chuckled, “maybe not yet, but we’re close.”

Bridgette sighed, “yeah, I bet. You get to talk to her all the time.” She closed her eyes. “Which I’m sure you love. She’s a nice person to talk to. I miss talking to her, but she’s so busy now. With you, which is fair, but I still miss her. She’s my best friend on the island, and I think maybe in the world.”

“I get that,” Duncan said, easing into the conversation. He didn’t know Bridgette well, but he knew Courtney considered the surfer her best friend. That was enough to at least be friendly with her. When they first started talking, it had been awkward, but he could talk about Courtney for days. Or, at least he could hear others talk about her. He didn’t want to share too much of their relationship. “She’s… yeah.”

“Yeah. She’s special, which obviously you see, and I just really miss her,” Bridgette sighed again, looking at Duncan, “I’m sorry. I just love her. She’s the best person I know, I think. And I’m not complaining because I know what’s she’s been doing, and it’s hanging out with you. I know you’d probably miss her a lot too if she suddenly started spending a whole lot less time with you.”

Duncan nodded. Bridgette was talking about Courtney the same way he thought about her. In the back of his mind, he knew this should cause some concern, but he didn’t care enough. He loved hearing his girlfriend’s friends praise her. She deserved it. “Yeah, sorry. You have Geoff to hang out with, though. I guess. But he’s not as cool as Court.”

“No, he isn’t at all,” Bridgette absently agreed. Then, she fully processed what he had said, and she realized something that probably wasn’t great. “Oh, my God. Geoff. I haven’t thought about him once since we’ve gotten here. Is that bad?”

“Fuck if I know,” Duncan rolled his eyes. He definitely didn’t care about Bridgette and Geoff’s so-called attraction to each other, which he didn’t completely buy. He had only mentioned him to be nice.

“But you wouldn’t ever not think about Courtney for over a whole day, right?” Bridgette asked, somewhat frantically. She needed to know if this was bad. “Like, if you realized you hadn’t given her a single thought, you’d be a little freaked out, right? You would never do that! And she would never not think about you.”

Duncan breathed out slowly. He didn’t care about this, but Bridgette really needed to shut up. “Don’t compare your fantasy thing with Geoff to mine and Courtney’s very real relationship. We actually like each other.”

Gasping loudly, Bridgette spun to face him. She didn’t know why, but Duncan’s comment had stung. “What? Your week-long very real relationship? What are you implying? That we don’t like each other?”

“It’s been eleven days,” Duncan said, still not caring enough to actually argue about this, “listen, Malibu, you want some advice? I don’t want to be a dick to you or anything, but you might need to hear this.”

Bridgette thought this over for a minute. She didn’t know him to be someone to speak about other people’s personal lives, not thinking it his business, so she assumed this must be important. She sighed, “yeah.”

“Cool. Listen, Bridgette, Geoff talks about you a lot, but it’s never anything personal. Court talks about you, too. Not nearly as much, but I learn a lot more about you from her than I do him. I’m sure you think you like each other, but could you tell me anything actually about him? You know, other than that he’s a dumbass and likes to party? For as much as you two claim you like each other, I don’t know why you aren’t _together_.”

“You sound like her,” Bridgette muttered just to fill the silence. She didn’t like how exposed Duncan’s assessment made her feel. She didn’t want to hear more, but she felt like she had to. “Anything else?”

Duncan shrugged, then nodded, “I guess what I’m trying to say is that if you actually liked each other, you’d be together by now. Sure, I dicked around some first, but, once I realized it was legit between us, I was pretty quick making my move. I didn’t let things simmer for a month, which is what you’re doing. I did something about it.”

Bridgette couldn’t respond to this. She didn’t know how. It was so… so… she didn’t know. It made her feel like everything was a lie. If someone had asked her ten minutes ago if she liked Geoff, her answer would have been yes. Now, she wasn’t so sure. Still looking at Duncan, she watched as his bored expression morphed into an easy grin.

Then, Courtney brushed past her to stand at her boyfriend’s side. She greeted him with a kiss on the cheek, and he wrapped his arm around her. “How was your massage, babe?” he asked.

“It was good,” Courtney smiled before turning to Bridgette, “hey, you okay? You left kind of suddenly.”

“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Bridgette waved a hand, “I don’t like massages.”

Courtney laughed, “good. What were you two talking about out here?”

Bridgette looked at Duncan. She would let him take this one. She didn’t want to tell Courtney they were talking about her before he made her question her feelings. All he said was, “nothing.”

Courtney laughed again and rubbed Duncan’s chest, “nothing? I’m not sure I believe that, but if that’s what you’re going with, then sure.” She turned back to the surfer. “Bridge will tell me later, right?”

“Right,” Bridgette agreed, even though she wasn’t sure if she would.

“That’s what I like to hear,” Courtney winked at the surfer before changing the subject, “so, I’m glad you’re okay, but I think we’re going to go now. I’ll see you at snack time, okay?”

Bridgette nodded, waving goodbye to the pair. Once they were gone, she slumped over the railing and sighed. She had so much to think about.

While she hadn’t given Geoff a second thought before her conversation with Duncan, now Bridgette couldn’t stop thinking about him, and not in a good, “I-like-him-so-much” kind of way. No, it was more in a “do-I-really-like-him?” kind of way. She wasn’t sure she knew, and she knew that was a problem. She was supposed to like him, and she did sometimes, but there were other times where she didn’t at all.

Her need to analyze their entire relationship was incessant. Bridgette had never been one to overthink things, but she couldn’t stop. Not as they ate their afternoon snack, and not as they had their final spa treatment, which was just immunizations. All her thoughts were about him and how she didn’t miss him and how she wasn’t sure she wanted a relationship with him. Earlier in the summer she definitely had, but now she felt like it had passed, and she wasn’t upset about it. What she was upset about was how much this was pestering her.

There were still several hours until dinner, so Bridgette retreated back to her room, with Lindsay, to think about it even more. She tried to pay attention to whatever the other blonde was talking about, but she just couldn’t.

Lindsay, however, knew when she wasn’t being paid attention to. She also knew there was something going on with Bridgette right now. The surfer was distant, and she had been jumpy during the snack and final treatment. That wasn’t normal Bridgette behavior. Something must had happened between the massage and the snack, but she didn’t know what. She needed to find out. She needed to help her friend feel better.

“Hey, Bridge,” Lindsay put her hand on her shoulder, “everything okay? You seem a little, I dunno, lost in thought. Wanna talk about anything?”

Bridgette sighed and turned to Lindsay, “no, I’m fine. I’m just thinking about some stuff, sorry.” She saw Lindsay’s genuinely concerned expression, and it hit her. Why wouldn’t she talk to her friend about this? “Wait, actually, do you mind if we talk about my thing? I wouldn’t want to interrupt whatever you were talking about.”

Lindsay shook her head, “of course not! Bridge, we can talk about anything! What’s up?”

“I guess it’s just, I don’t know,” Bridgette closed her eyes and tried to think of a way to say this that wouldn’t make her sound completely obsessed, which she was at the moment. “Did you miss Tyler after he left? You never really talk about him except in passing. Do you ever think about him?”

“I miss Tyler all the time!” Lindsay exclaimed, not entirely sure why Bridgette asked that. This couldn’t be what she wanted to talk about, but she would still answer. “Like before he even left. He told me your team was going to vote him out, and I missed him so much! And yeah, I think about him. Not as much as I used to but sometimes when I’m alone. I don’t talk about him that much because it makes me miss him, and that makes me sad. Also, like, you voted him out. I’m not mad, of course! It’s a game and you were trying to save Court! It could be weird. Why?”

Bridgette let her mind process all of this. She hadn’t realized Lindsay missed Tyler even at all, but it made sense. It also made her realize that she had never even considered that she might miss Geoff at any point in time. She missed Courtney, and she was still here. Duncan said he’d miss Courtney if he didn’t get to talk to her. Lindsay missed Tyler all the time. She didn’t miss Geoff. “How do you know if you really like someone?”

“I don’t know, you just kinda know,” Lindsay squeezed Bridgette’s shoulder. She was starting to understand. “You feel kind of tingly when you talk to them or see them or think about them. This is about Geoff, right?”

“Yeah,” Bridgette sighed. She never felt tingly, at least not around Geoff. “I thought I liked him, but now I don’t think I do. I don’t know if I did. I mean, he’s one of my best friends here, and I _like_ him sometimes, but other times I don’t. And I don’t really miss him at all right now. I didn’t even think about him at all until recently. Is that bad?”

“I think so. Sorry, Bridge.” Lindsay let go of her shoulder and pulled the surfer into a hug, “can I ask you a question?” Bridgette nodded. “I have a theory. When do you think you like-like Geoff?”

“Mostly just when we’re together,” Bridgette shrugged, “or when I think about things he’s done for me. They’re usually dumb, but they’re sweet, and he did them for me.”

Lindsay nodded, her theory still holding up, “honesty time, okay? Do you like Geoff because he likes you or because you actually like him? If he never showed you any interest, would you had ever thought you liked him? I know it can get tricky. It’s nice to feel wanted, but are you maybe confusing that feeling with attraction?”

Bridgette didn’t answer, she just tightened her grip around Lindsay. Those questions were rough, and they made her think even more than Duncan’s comments had. She felt like she didn’t know anything anymore. Had she really been mistaking her feelings for so long?

“Hey, it’s okay,” Lindsay promised, letting go of Bridgette and sliding off the bed, “you don’t have to like him. I know I said some stuff that might be hard, but I’m going to get Court. See what she has to say.”

Then, without waiting for a response, Lindsay left. Her heart hurt for Bridgette. It was never fun dealing with boy troubles, especially when they weren’t even because of the boy! This was a feelings thing, and Bridgette needed her best friend. Lindsay needed her, too. She couldn’t go this alone. Hoping she was in her room, Lindsay knocked on Courtney’s door and waited. She heard some shuffling from inside, and soon enough she opened the door.

“Hey, Lindsay, what’s up?” Courtney leaned against the door frame. The oversized black and red t-shirt she was wearing definitely didn’t belong to her, and Lindsay could see a shirtless Duncan lying on her bed.

“I was just wondering if I could borrow you for a moment,” Lindsay said, “are you busy? If you’re, like, doing something right now I can come back later. Bridge and I are just having a lil’ crisis and wanted your help.”

Courtney shrugged, shaking her head, “we’re not doing anything. I have some time. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s really wrong, just some recent discoveries. It’d be easier to explain with Bridge. It won’t take that long, though! So, don’t worry,” Lindsay looked around Courtney to Duncan, “she’ll be back in, like, ten minutes at most. Promise!”

“He’ll be fine,” Courtney laughed, waving at him before stepping into the hallway and closing the door, “he can entertain himself for a few minutes.”

Lindsay smiled and knocked on Bridgette’s door, “I know! I just didn’t want him to think we were, like, stealing you from him or something.”

Bridgette opened the door, and the pair came in. Lindsay reclaimed her spot on Bridgette’s bed, and Courtney pulled the armchair over. “I hope he wouldn’t think that. Lindsay, Duncan and I are our own people. You can’t steal me from him.”

“I know,” Lindsay flipped over to her stomach, “still, _you_ might want to know how long you’ll be gone. That’s his shirt, right? You look super cute in it. I love wearing my boyfriend’s clothes.”

Courtney looked down at the shirt then back up at Lindsay, “thanks. He let me put it on earlier after… well, that doesn’t matter. He said I could wear it as long as I wanted. I think that means it’s mine now. Boy t-shirts are really comfortable.” She turned her attention to Bridgette, “hey, so Lindsay said there’s a crisis?”

Chewing her lip, Bridgette shrugged, “I guess you could call it that. I might have realized something.”

“Well?” Courtney prompted, punctuating the question by holding out a hand, “what did you realize? And how can I fix it?”

“I don’t think it’s something you can fix,” Bridgette pressed a hand to her forehead, “I think I don’t like Geoff.”

Whatever Courtney was expecting, it wasn’t this. She looked to Lindsay, who was nodding along to what Bridgette said. So, she couldn’t fix it, but was this something that even needed fixing? It didn’t seem like that big of a deal, honestly. “Okay. You don’t like Geoff. Where’s the crisis?”

Bridgette opened her mouth to answer her before closing it again. She didn’t know how she could explain her feelings in a way that would make them make sense to Courtney. “I don’t know.”

“I know!” Lindsay jumped in, “it’s kinda like she doesn’t know if she ever liked him or if she just liked being liked by him. She doesn’t know how she feels! She’s all confused, right, Bridge?”

“Right,” Bridgette agreed, happy with the way Lindsay explained it, “I’m all confused, and I guess I’m not really used to being confused. I’m usually so in-tune with what I’m feeling.”

“I guess I could understand that,” Courtney moved from the chair to the bed, sitting between the blondes, “can I ask what caused all this? I was under the impression that you really liked him. Yesterday you nearly cried because you were moving cabins, and he wasn’t going to be on the other side of the wall anymore. This seems sudden.”

Bridgette looked down at her lap, “yeah, I know. It kind of is. And I thought I did, but Duncan said something when we were talking earlier, and I’ve kind of been spiraling ever since.”

“What?” Courtney raised her eyebrows, “did you just say this is because of something that _Duncan_ said? My boyfriend, Duncan? Bridgette, I promise whatever he said is not worth spiraling over. He’s, well, he’s an asshole a lot of the time. Not to me, of course, or DJ for some reason, but to most of the other people on this island. You’re not exempt, and Geoff definitely isn’t exempt. Don’t take what he says to heart.”

“I know, but he wasn’t trying to be an asshole when he said it,” Bridgette laid down on her back, “we were talking about you because that’s the only thing we have in common, and then he said something about Geoff. I got a little freaked because I realized I hadn’t thought about him once since the last time I saw him. Then he said more, but I kind of asked for it. He was honest.”

Courtney sighed, “that’s good at least. So, what do you need from me right now? I want to offer support, but I don’t know how. Are you sure I’m even qualified to give any kind of relationship advice? Duncan’s my first boyfriend.”

Sitting back up, Bridgette nodded, “you’re qualified. The way Duncan was about you was very sweet. It was actually one of the things that made me question everything,” she let out a hollow laugh, “he obviously cares about you so much. Your relationship is solid.”

“Well, yes. I know that. I just didn’t know that qualified me for this,” Courtney said, “but, Bridge, what do you need? Why am I here? I want to be here, of course, I just need to know how I can help or if I even can.”

“I guess just tell me how you know you like Duncan?” Bridgette really didn’t know how Courtney could help either considering Lindsay was the one who brought her here.

Lindsay, however, apparently did know, “no, no, no! Don’t tell her that! Bridge, don’t worry about anyone else! It’s not good to compare! You already heard all about me and Tyler; you don’t need to hear about them, too. Court, just give her some advice!”

“But I don’t have any advice for this!” Courtney got off the bed, “I’ve never been in this situation. Duncan’s the first boy I’ve ever liked, and I know I like him. I’ve never been so sure of anything. But I guess if I decided I didn’t like him like that, which I don’t see happening, then I would break up with him. Yes, it’s a choice. I choose to be with him, and the more I get to know him, the more I like him. I’m only with him in the first place _because_ I like him, though. You can’t force yourself to like someone, but you can decide to like them more. Aren’t you the one who always says not to think so much? Maybe you should do that. Don’t think and just feel.”

As she watched Courtney pace across the room, Bridgette felt like the weight had been lifted off her. Courtney didn’t mean to, but she ended up saying the perfect thing. She needed to not think but feel. Courtney said the more time she spent with Duncan the more she liked him, but Bridgette felt almost the opposite about Geoff. Her romantic attraction to him had peaked, if it was ever there. When he was around, it muddled things up, but now that she had some time away from him, she could feel clearly. She didn’t like him as more than a friend. She would never be able to speak so surely as Courtney just had.

“Thank you, Court,” Bridgette stood and grabbed her best friend by the arm to stop her before pulling her into a hug, “that was really helpful. I appreciate it.”

“It was?” Courtney asked, “I mean, of course. Anything for you, Bridge. I’m happy I could provide some assistance. You good now?”

Bridgette nodded, pulling away and sitting on the edge of the bed, “yeah, I am. Thanks.”

Courtney smiled, “you’re welcome, Bridgette. Really, anytime. I do have a boy waiting for me, so do you mind if I go? If you want to talk more, I don’t mind staying, but I should probably tell him first.”

Bridgette laughed, “no, it’s fine, get out of here. Thanks for coming, though!”

“Yeah, of course. Bye, Bridge,” Courtney turned to the other blonde, “Linds.” She started to leave, but Lindsay had one more thing for her.

“Wait!” Lindsay hopped off the bed and ran over to Courtney, “I know you’ve been sleepover-ing with Duncan a lot, but I thought it might be fun if we had a sleepover! Or at least a hang-out-over until, like, midnight! I loved our last one so much.”

Not even taking thirty second to think about it, Courtney nodded. The amount of times she had ditched Bridgette and Lindsay to hang out with Duncan on this reward alone was a little gross, and their last sleepover had been… not that fun now that she thought about it. “You loved our last sleepover? Lindsay, you were upset about Heather. I cried about Duncan for an embarrassingly long time.”

Lindsay shrugged, “yeah, but it was a night away from my cabin. Even with all that, it was still better than the night I would have had with Heather! And you only cried for, like, four minutes at most. This one will be better.”

Courtney followed Lindsay back into Bridgette’s room so that they could hash out the details of the “hang-out-over” before leaving for real. They would meet back there at 9:45, and Lindsay would spend the night. Courtney would see. After going back to her room, Courtney and Duncan spent the next few hours alternating between messing around and talking. Lindsay decided that Bridgette absolutely could not worry about Geoff or her feelings anymore, so she kept finding random things to talk about.

The cookout had been a blast, the food good and the friends better. The staff grilled hotdogs and hamburgers for them, and they made a black bean burger for Bridgette. There had been beautiful fireworks once the sun had set, which they got to enjoy with fresh chocolate chip cookies. When dinner ended, the girls went back to their rooms to get ready for their evening together, Duncan swung by his room to get all his stuff before going to Courtney’s, and Trent settled into his room for the night.

“You sure you have to go to this sleepover, babe?” Duncan asked from his spot on Courtney’s bed. She sat in front of the mirror and combed her wet hair, and he just watched. She was wearing his shirt again. “Can’t you just stay here with me? Don’t wanna sleep without you.”

Courtney smiled slightly as she looked at him over her shoulder, “Yes, I’m sure. I need to be a friend considering _you_ were the one who broke Bridgette earlier. Besides, I already told you I was coming back once they feel asleep.”

“I don’t believe you,” Duncan shot off the bed and knelt behind her, wrapping an arm around her, “babe, you couldn’t make it past 8:30 last night.” He kissed her shoulder. “You’ll fall asleep over there, and then I’ll have to sleep alone tonight.”

“That’s not going to happen, I want to come back, too. I’m not going to fall asleep without you,” Courtney placed her free hand on his and squeezed it, “now, get off. I need to finish combing my hair.”

Duncan sighed but unwrapped himself from her, sitting down next to her instead, “I just wanna be with you. What if I came to the sleepover?”

Courtney couldn’t help her laughter as she set her comb down and turned to him, “honey, no. You’d hate it. I don’t know what we’re going to do, but you’d be so bored. Not to mention, you’re not invited. You don’t want to come to our girls’ night, and we don’t want you there.”

Duncan groaned, leaning back on his palms, “fuck, I know. ’M just selfish. You’ll actually stay up long enough to leave?”

“I’m hoping,” Courtney wrapped her arms around his neck, “this is going to make me sound like a shitty friend, but I don’t want to waste sleeping in this nice, big, comfortable bed with you for anything. I want to have fun with my friends, but I also like being with you.”

“Maybe, but it makes you an awesome girlfriend, which you already are,” Duncan sat back up so that he could he could grab her sides, “guess you have to go pretty soon. Give me a kiss goodbye?”

Courtney rolled her eyes but did as he asked, pressing her lips to his for about fifteen seconds before pulling away. She stood up and offered him a hand. He took it, and she pulled him up. They started walking to the door. “What are you going to do here all by yourself?”

Duncan shrugged, “Probably just draw some. Might listen to some music. Wait for you.”

“Sounds like an exciting night,” Courtney laughed, “try not to have too much fun.”

“I won’t,” Duncan opened the door for her before giving her a quick peck on the lips, “you do have fun, though! See you later.”

“I will,” Courtney squeezed his hand before dropping it, “I’ll be back in maybe four hours, but you don’t have to wait up. You can go to bed whenever you want.”

Duncan grabbed the door with one hand, “no, I’m going to wait up, at least for a while. Bye.”

Courtney nodded and waved, and Duncan let the door close. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to Bridgette’s room and knocked on the door. Lindsay answered it, “Court! You’re here! Yay! Come in!”

“I said I’d be here didn’t I?” Courtney laughed, stepping into the room, “what’s on the agenda for tonight?”

“So many things! We’re going to have so much fun!” Lindsay grabbed Courtney’s arm and pulled her to Bridgette’s bed, where Bridgette already was, “we’re just going to hang out and do fun girl things and not talk about any boys!”

Courtney’s eyes found Bridgette’s, and they shared an amused look, “no boy talk, huh? I can get into that. So, what are we doing now?”

“We were just picking out some nail polish!” Lindsay motioned to the numerous bottles on the bed, “we were all going to paint each other’s nails! Pick a color.”

Courtney cringed, looking down at her already painted nails, “I just did mine yesterday. Can I skip out on this?”

Lindsay sighed dramatically, “if you must. But let me see! What color are they?” Knowing her black polish wouldn’t hold up, Courtney reluctantly held out her hand. Sure enough, “black? Court! Why would you paint your nails _black_? That’s not a fun summer color! It’s, like, a winter color.”

“I, uhm, didn’t pick the color,” Courtney mumbled, “someone else did.”

“Who?” Lindsay demanded, “who would put you in black nail polish in the middle of the summer?”

Courtney picked at the bedspread, “I don’t know if I’m allowed to say. But they, uhm, painted them for me, and theirs are painted the same, just not sparkly. I’d like to keep it.”

Lindsay squealed, quickly forgetting the no boy talk rule, “you and Duncan are wearing matching nail polish? That’s so cute! Okay, that’s allowed. You two are perfect together!” She turned to Bridgette and then realized. “Bridge! I’m sorry. We’re not supposed to talk about boys! Forgive me?”

“Thanks, I guess,” Courtney said while Bridgette laughed, “I think it’s cute, too, and it’s your rule. I don’t care what we talk about.”

“Well I do, and I said no boy talk. I feel like that’s all you’ve talked about today, and you need a break,” Lindsay pressed a palm to her collar bone, “now, pick a color! I want to paint your nails.”

Bridgette nodded and picked up a bright yellow polish, handing it to Lindsay, “is this one good?

“Yes! Yellow is such a good color for you! Like the sun!” Lindsay grabbed Bridgette’s hand and started painting, “you’re so sunshiny and your nails are going to be so sunshiny. It’s perfect!”

As the night went on, they moved between different activities. The whole time they talked about their lives at home and the other campers, the ones who were girls. They did a surprisingly good job keeping the topic away from boys. As they talked, they gave either other ridiculous makeovers and danced around the room. Before they knew it, everyone was tired, and Lindsay insisted they move the party to the bed.

Courtney laid between Bridgette and Lindsay, both of them asleep. The digital clock showed 1:30 AM, and she knew she needed to go if she wanted to get back before she fell asleep. It had been fun, but now she just wanted to wash all the makeup off her face, undo her hair, and fall asleep next to Duncan.

Successfully removing Bridgette’s arm from around her waist, Courtney slowly wiggled out of their grasps. Somehow, she had found herself in the middle with both blondes lying on her. She knew Bridgette was a heavy sleeper, having shared a cabin with her the whole game, but she had no idea about Lindsay. She hoped she could get out of this without waking her. Making it to the edge of the bed, she let out a breath of relief. She was in the clear! Or so she thought.

“Court?” she heard Lindsay mumble as she was finding her shoes, “are you leaving now?”

“Uhm, yes, sorry,” Courtney winced as she turned and found that Lindsay had already filled the space she had previously occupied, her arms around Bridgette.

“’S kay,” Lindsay slurred, “had fun with you tonight. Happy you came.”

Courtney smiled, “me too, Linds. See you tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. Go be with your boy now. Bye.”

Slipping her shoes on, Courtney nodded even though she knew Lindsay couldn’t see her. Then, she walked back to her room. Upon opening the door, she saw that there was still a lamp on. Duncan, who was still awake, was drawing something with his headphones on. He hadn’t look up form his sketchbook yet, so she assumed his music was too loud for him to have heard her come in. Smiling to herself, she pulled her leggings and bra off and threw them on top of her suitcase before stepping into the bathroom.

When Courtney came back into the main room, Duncan had his headphones around his neck. He was leaning against the pillows, his sketchbook still opened in his lap, and she watched as a genuine smile claimed his face. His eyes were sparkling with something she couldn’t place, but it looked good. Laughing, she crawled into bed next to him, tucking herself behind him

“What are you drawing?” Courtney rested her chin on his shoulder and scanned the page. There were various sized skulls and crossbones, which wasn’t a surprise to her, as well as a few other things. Some hearts were drawn in the bottom corner of the page, their initials and names littered around the area, and a lion head was coming out of the side of the page.

Her favorite, though, was a sketch of a girl who could only be her. The figure was nondescript for the most part, but there were tiny dots, freckles, scattered across the curvy body and curly hair sitting on top of the head. He had put so much work into it, and it made her heart swell. “That’s me, right?”

“Like it?” Duncan closed the sketchbook and set it on the bedside table, placing his headphones and iPod on top, “I was just messing around, but then it looked good. Wanted to show you.”

“Babe, I love it,” Courtney kissed his cheek, “everything you make looks good.”

Duncan grinned and swung his body around hers, planting himself in her lap, “you’re nice.” He placed his hands on her hips, and they started creeping up under her shirt. “And pretty.” He pecked her on the lips. “Fuck, you look so hot wearing nothing but my shirt.” He repositioned them so that she was laying on her back. “Just fucking keep it, babe. Looks better on you.” His hands found her breasts, his fingers fanning across them, and he kissed her.

Courtney smiled into the kiss but grabbed his hands and pulled them out from under her shirt. She felt him pout, but he didn’t say anything or pull away. After letting herself enjoy the way his tongue moved in her mouth for another minute, she squeezed his shoulder. Getting the hint, he rolled off her, pulling her to his chest instead, “sorry, I just had to kiss you.”

“I didn’t mind,” Courtney reached over him and turned off the lamp, “it’s just late. There’s a challenge tomorrow. I’m tired. At least I made it back, though. How long were you planning on waiting?”

“Only until two. Which should be around now,” he pressed a kiss to her forehead as she wrapped an arm around him, “and, babe, there’s not a challenge tomorrow. We still have a day left on reward. You really are tired.”

Courtney groaned, “really? Shit. Today just felt like the last day with the cookout and the sleepover and everything. It’s all running together.” She tangled her legs with his. “I’m glad we get another day. It’s a happy mistake.”

“Me too,” Duncan laughed, “hey, sleep is good. Let’s do that. Then, maybe you’ll know what day it is in the morning.”

Courtney groaned again, “shut up. But, yes, let’s. I can’t believe I messed that up.” Then, her eyes closed, and, a few minutes later, they were both asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was something different! The next chapter will cover the next day and a half of the time between the chapters, but it will be with the campers stuck at camp. That one shouldn't be as long, and it will have more to do with the game and less fluff, mostly due to who is on the island. 
> 
> As always, let me know if you enjoyed it! Leave a kudos or a comment if that's your style! Thank you to everyone who has left kudos and commented. If you want any updates or just want to see my thoughts, check me out at i-wish-i-was-kidding.tumblr.com. See you next time!


	13. The Importance of Friendship

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long! This chapter follows the loser the last day before the next challenge. Enjoy!

The dining hall was quiet, everyone there but no one saying a word. The girls spread out across the former gophers table, a sizable amount of space between each of them. It was the best way to prevent yet another argument. DJ and Geoff sat in their usual seats at the old bass table, silently waiting for the impending fight.

Gwen loudly sighed. Heather stabbed her scrambled eggs with extra force, her fork scraping against the plate. Leshawna grumbled something about stuck up drama queens. DJ and Geoff shared an exhausted look.

The past day and a half had been miserable for everyone, and the next day wasn’t looking any better. All Heather, Gwen, and Leshawna did was fight, and DJ and Geoff weren’t used to it. It was all encompassing and it brought everyone down. There was nothing else to do except listen to them fight.

Gwen sighed again as she rested her head on the table. Heather’s eyes snapped to her, and they narrowed slightly.

“Could you shut the fuck up?” Heather groaned, “some of us are trying to eat our shitty breakfast. All your noise is giving me a headache, and your pity party isn’t nearly as cute as you think it is. Trent’s not even here to see it.”

“Fuck off. No one even likes you,” Gwen picked up her head, “think about that before you criticize me.”

Heather rolled her eyes, “oh, Gwennie. There’s so much you don’t understand. At least I have a personality.”

Gwen opened her mouth to retort, but the third girl spoke, “you need to let up. What did any of us do to you that wasn’t reactive?”

“Thanks, Leshawna, but I can handle this myself,” Gwen glared at her former friend, “we wouldn’t even have to deal with this if you hadn’t voted to keep her during our last marshmallow ceremony. This is your fault.”

Heather broke out into a wide and disbelieving smirk, “are you still on that? Wow, that’s pathetic. And really great. I didn’t know you would take it that hard. The perfect added bonus,” she laughed while Leshawna shook her head, “girl, I love you, but it’s gettin’ harder. You need to get over it. This is a game. It wasn’t personal.”

As the girls fell into yet another nasty argument, DJ and Geoff gathered their trash and got the hell out of there. This was no way to start a day. Figuring their cabin was the safest place for them, they retreated back there.

“Dude, this blows,” Geoff collapsed onto his bed.

“Don’t I know it, man,” DJ sat down on the empty bed across from him, “I don’t understand how they can fight so much. It’s exhausting.”

Geoff groaned, “me neither. Deej, I don’t like it. I wish there was something we could do to, like, I dunno, stop it or something. I wish our teammates were here. Any of them would know what to do.”

DJ furrowed his brows, “our teammates? G, they’re awful at conflict resolution. It’d be a mess.”

“That’s not true!” Geoff sat back up and leaned towards DJ, “Court always knows what to do. Always. And Bridge is awesome at making people like each other. And Dunc… I don’t know what he could do, but it’d be nice to have him around for this, dammit. Maybe he’d intimidate them into not fighting?”

“Pretty sure Courtney’s more likely to intimidate them into not fighting, but whatever works, right?” DJ laughed, “but seriously, man. I don’t think they’d be much help here. Maybe Bridgette, but definitely not the other two.”

Geoff walked over to DJ and sat down next to him, “you don’t think so? Dude, let me just ask you, what would Dunc do? Like, if he were here instead of us, what’d he do? He’d totally be able to get ’em to shut up. I know it.”

DJ rubbed his chin, pretending to think it over, “hmmm. I think Duncan would just tell them to shut the hell up. Or leave. Nothing would get solved.”

“Okay, maybe we don’t want to channel the Duncster’s energy, but, like, he could totally just tell ’em to shut up, and they just would!” He paused, waiting for DJ’s reaction. His friend just shook his head. “Or not. But it could work! Whatever, what would Court do? She’s the best at solving all our problems!”

“Courtney? The best at this? Maybe she can solve our dumb problems, but not when she doesn’t care, which she really wouldn’t. And she’s never been good at conflict resolution. She would, I don’t know…” a thought occurred to him, and DJ had to laugh, “she would tell them to just shut the hell up, and then leave. Wow, they’re the same. Also, I’d listen to her before him.”

“Dammit, why are you right?” Geoff fell back on the bed, “you’re so smart. And yeah… Court’s way scarier than Dunc. When he’s mad, it’s kinda funny, but when she’s mad… fuck. She’s scary. But okay, last one. What would Bridge do? And don’t say ‘tell them to shut the hell up’ or ‘leave!’ She wouldn’t!”

DJ fondly shook his head, “you’re right about one thing, at least. Bridgette would probably just force us to wake up at 6:30 AM to figure out the perfect plan only for them to make up on their own.”

“God, that sucked,” Geoff sat back up, and then he had it! His epiphany! Shooting off the bed, he stood in front of DJ. “Dude! That’s it! Not the waking up at 6:30 part because that’s fucking dumb, but the plan part! We can just use the plan we made up to get Court and Dunc to talk again! Let’s get Gwen and Leshawna to make up!”

“That’s not a terrible idea,” DJ admitted as he thought it over. While not exactly the same, the two situations had a lot in common: two friends in a nasty fight. “That could actually work. Remind me of the specifics?”

Score! He had an idea that didn’t suck! Geoff grinned as he sat back down, “Deej! Alright! And I think we were gonna lock them in the arts and crafts tent ‘til they made out. Pretty simple right?”

Just like that, it was all over. Geoff’s short streak of brilliance was over. DJ shook his head, this time confused, “uh, first off, Gwen and Leshawna aren’t Duncan and Courtney. We’re not try to get them together. Second off, that wasn’t our plan. That was _your_ plan, which Bridgette and I had to veto several times.”

“Riiiiiiight. I remember that now. Y’all didn’t appreciate my genius,” Geoff crossed his arms over his chest and attempted to look disapproving. It didn’t work, and both former bass burst out laughing. “Okay, so maybe that wasn’t my brightest moment. But, like, it could have worked! Doesn’t matter. I think Bridge was supposed to work on Court, you were supposed to work on Dunc, and I was supposed to stay out of it.”

“That sounds about right,” DJ laughed, “we need to modify it a little, but that shouldn’t be too hard. Any ideas?”

Geoff nodded enthusiastically, and the two dove into their task headfirst. They needed to find a way to get Gwen and Leshawna to talk _and_ to keep Heather occupied during that. The biggest obstacle was neither knew any of the girls very well or how to get them to open up. There was a lot of guesswork involved, and some of it would have to be winged, but they needed to figure something out.

After forming a plan that had the least chances to make things worse, DJ and Geoff headed over to the girls’ cabin. Hopefully, at least one would be there, and the others wouldn’t be hard to find. Knocking on the door, they leaned against the railing and waited. A minute later, a confused Gwen opened it.

“Uh, hey. What are you two doing here?” Gwen asked, glancing between the two of them.

Geoff smiled, “just seeing if y’all wanted to hang out or something! We thought it might be nice to shake things up. No reason not to, right?”

Gwen considered this. There had to be some ulterior motive here, but she couldn’t figure out what it was. No way did they want to hang out with her or Leshawna or Heather when they could just hang out with each other and not have to worry about their admittedly petty drama. Sure, they both seemed like nice guys, but this was beyond that. They must want something from them. “Why?”

“Thought it could be fun,” DJ shrugged, “we don’t know y’all very well. Y’all don’t know us very well. We thought we could split up and make new friends. Don’t tell me y’all aren’t tired of each other.”

“We definitely are,” Gwen muttered before addressing them, “what did you have in mind? I’m not really on good terms with either of them, but maybe if one of you two were there it could be okay.”

“Alright! That’s what we like to hear!” Geoff exclaimed, offering Gwen a hand for a high five. She took it, albeit rather clumsily.

DJ laughed, “We were thinkin’ that Heather could hang out with me, and you and Leshawna could hang out with Geoff.” He placed a hand on Gwen’s shoulder. She looked at it before looking back at him. “I know things haven’t been great between y’all, but we’d appreciate it if you’d give it a chance. And, full disclosure, we have a bit of goal here. Hope you don’t mind too much.”

Gwen sighed. There it was, that ulterior motive, which she still hadn’t figured out. Of course they didn’t want to hang out with her for her. “What?”

“We want y’all to be friends,” Geoff admitted, “We know y’all used to be, but that something happened. Like, I wanted to help y’all to be friends again. It makes me sad when friends stop being friends.

Oh. That was sweet and almost completely unselfish. They wanted them to be friends, which meant that their fighting was definitely affecting things. Leshawna had made it no secret that she wanted to be friends again, and it was worth considering. She still had to work through a few thing, and Geoff was offering to talk through it. Why wouldn’t she at least try?

Gwen bobbed her head, “alright then, I guess. But I’m the only one here. I don’t know where Leshawna is,” she turned to DJ, “but Heather’s at the dock, I think. Are you sure you really want to hang out with her, though? You seem like a nice guy, and she’s awful. I wouldn’t even subject my worst enemy to that.”

“Thanks for the warning, but I can handle myself,” DJ laughed, waving, “I’m going to find her now, but I’ll see y’all later. Hope you can work everything out.” Then, he left.

“What do you say you ’n me head over to the arts and crafts tent?” Geoff asked once DJ was gone.

Gwen took a minute to answer, the wheels in her brain turning, “there’s an arts and crafts tent? Since when?”

“Since always! ’S the best place to talk!” Geoff slung an arm around Gwen’s shoulders, and she tried not to tense up. With the exception of Courtney, her interactions with the Killer Bass had always been overly friendly. That was just who they were. Then, he pulled her to the arts and crafts tent, which she had never noticed before.

Once there, he released her, allowing her to sit in one of the stools. “Alright, spill. What’s goin’ on? Why aren’t y’all friends anymore? Bridge told me, well not me but us, but I wasn’t really payin’ any attention. Court was there. I didn’t need to. That doesn’t matter. What’d she do? Or what’d you do?”

Gwen shrugged, looking around the room, “nothing that bad, I guess. She just voted to keep Heather during our last marshmallow ceremony. We finally had the chance to get rid of her, and she wasted it.”

Geoff’s brows furrowed, “that all? Dudette! It’s a game! And wouldn’t that have been a long time ago? Like the last challenge didn’t have an elimination, and we lost the one before that. You shouldn’t hold onto things! ’S not good!”

“You wouldn’t understand,” Gwen focused on a tub of clay. Yet another person diminishing her feelings. She shouldn’t have agreed to come. “Heather’s awful, but for so long we couldn’t vote her out. Then, when we finally get the chance, Leshawna doesn’t. She didn’t even tell me!”

“But you’re still here?” Geoff said, his voice full of confusion. He wasn’t trying to be condescending, Gwen realized, he legitimately had no idea why this would bother her.

Gwen’s face softened as she looked at him, his expression matching the confusion in his voice, “yeah, I guess. It just really sucked. I was… blindsided? Yeah, blindsided. I thought we had a plan to vote her out. She didn’t even tell me she wasn’t!”

Sitting down next to Gwen, Geoff frowned. Excluding the first marshmallow ceremony, he had always been on the right side of the vote, and it wasn’t even that big of a deal then. He couldn’t relate. “That does seriously suck. I wouldn’t even know how that felt. But d’ya think you could maybe forgive her? I’d hate for you to lose a friend over a game decision. You need all the people you can get in this game, and she seems to want to be with you.”

“Yeah,” Gwen sighed, slowly breathing out, “I might be holding on to it longer than I should, but you really don’t understand. Heather’s awful. She should have been gone a long time ago.”

“I’m not gonna argue with you on that. Being on her team that last challenge was brutal, but there’s nothing you can do about it now,” Geoff grabbed Gwen’s shoulders and forced her to look at him before letting go, “who’s it helping bein’ all mad about it? So, Heather’s still here, and that sucks, but you can’t let it ruin your time or friendships! Like, are you havin’ fun with all this?”

Was she having fun? Anyone with a heartbeat could tell that, no, she absolutely wasn’t having fun with all this. While Geoff was essentially telling her to get over it, it didn’t feel that way. It felt like he wanted her to have a good time here, and she believed that. He always want everyone to have a good time. And, truthfully, Gwen had never thought about it in those terms. Being mad was hurting more than it could ever help anything, and Heather was _winning_. She had wormed her way into her head, into her friendship, and Gwen was _letting_ her ruin her friendship. This wasn’t about Heather anymore; it was about her inability to let things go and trust.

“No, I’m not having fun,” Gwen admitted in a quiet voice, “I guess I’ve been kind of bratty. It just sucked so much, but I need to get over it. Would Leshawna even forgive me?”

“Would Leshawna even forgive you?” Geoff repeated her question back to her in an incredulous voice, “dudette! I’m not tryin’ to eavesdrop or anything, but your arguments are loud. She keeps tryin’ to go to bat for you, and you keep shuttin’ her down! She’d totally forgive you I think! Like, I dunno your friendship, but she seems cool.”

“You’re right. She is cool. And she’s been waiting for me to forgive her for the past week. I don’t deserve that. Am I shitty friend?”

Geoff shrugged, then shook his head, “nah. You were dealin’ with somethin’. I think she gets that. So, are y’all going to be friend again now? You’ll talk to her?”

Looking back at the clay, Gwen nodded, “yeah. I’ll talk to her, if she’ll even let me.” She looked at Geoff again. “I’ll apologize to you first, though. I kind of wrote you and DJ off when you came by earlier. I thought you were going to try to… I don’t know, but I was a little wary. And, you’ve really surprised me today, Geoff. You’ve been surprisingly helpful and insightful, and I’ve always thought you were a little, well, dim. I’m sorry.”

Geoff waved a hand, “what fucking ever. I am a lil’ dim, but there are a few things I know about. Like feelin’ good! So, what’d’ya say you go find Leshawna? Somethin’ tells me you don’t need me for that.”

“No, I think I’ll be good,” Gwen giggled, not even caring that she was giggling. She found that around Geoff it was hard not to giggle. It was hard not to feel good, and it made her do things she otherwise wouldn’t. Like offering her hand for a high five, “thanks for helping me.”

Geoff accepted the high five with a huge grin, “no problem! I don’t like when friends aren’t friends.”

Standing up, Gwen smiled, “well, you’re a better person than I am. I’ll have to find you later and tell you how it went. Hopefully this will work out.”

With that, the pair said their goodbyes to each other. Gwen left to find Leshawna and apologize. Geoff stuck around the arts and crafts tent to make something for Bridgette. He missed her and wanted to have a present for her when she got back, he just had to figure out what that would be.

Meanwhile, DJ found Heather at the dock, just where Gwen said she’d be. She didn’t look so unapproachable with her back to him, but he had the feeling things would be different if he could see her face. He had no problem admitting that Heather was intimidating, but he had to do this. She was just a person, and there really wasn’t anything she could actually do to him. He was confident in himself, in his allies, and in his place in the game. He could do this.

As DJ moved from the sandy beach to the wooden dock, he could tell that Heather heard him, but she thankfully didn’t turn her head or greet him. No, her back stiffened as she sat up straight and her fingers curled around the edge of the dock. It was almost as if she was getting into a defensive stance.

DJ sat down a meter away from her. Heather kept her eyes trained on the lakes, but he assumed that she had seen him in her peripheral. “Hey.”

Heather slowly moved her head to face him, her hands still holding onto the dock, “what are you doing here?”

“Sitting,” was all DJ offered. He would let Heather guide the conversation. It felt easier that way.

“Obviously, but why are you sitting here?” Heather rolled her eyes, but it didn’t have its usual malice.

Rubbing the back of his neck, DJ laughed nervously, “Geoff and I thought we would shake things up some, get to know you gophers a little better. We’re all playing the game together now, and we thought it might be nice to get a better feel of the competition, which I’m sure you’d want, too.”

Heather rolled her eyes again, but she let go of the dock and placed her hands in her lap, “let’s talk then. I’ve wanted a chance to talk to you without other blond one around, so this works out. I’m interested in you, game wise.”

DJ blinked. He blinked again. He carefully looked at Heather. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to say to that. Thank you, I guess?”

“Of course you don’t,” Heather sighed, “but yes, thank you does suffice. You should be honored, DJ. I’m not interested in just anyone in this game. As far as I can tell, you and Courtney are the only two of you worth anything.”

“Uh… sure? Thank you again, then…” That was unexpected, and DJ didn’t know what to say to it. He supposed it was better than her mocking him, but what was she hoping to get from this?

Heather smiled, choosing not to see his confusion, “you’re welcome! From what I see, you’re good at this game, and you’re the only one with their priorities straight. Aside from me, you’re the only one who hasn’t succumbed to your hormones. I applaud you for that.”

DJ shrugged, “it’s not really that big of a deal. Wasn’t a game move. I’m just not interested in that right now, but no shame to everyone else, right?

“It’s disgusting how into each other everyone else is,” Heather said, “especially with all the pining going on. It’s honestly pathetic. Hello, you’re in a game for $100,000! And you’re too worried if blonde one likes you or not? Don’t even get me started on Trent and Gwennie. It’s like they don’t even care. Even if it is with juvie, at least good on Courtney for locking it down. If you’re going to insist on finding someone, you should at least be able to take advantage of it! Hell, there are times I wouldn’t mind having a pretty girl around just for that reason.”

DJ mumbled something under his breath, uncomfortable with the topic of conversation. He really didn’t like thinking about what his castmates and friends were doing with each other during their free time, and it really wasn’t either of theirs business. Raking his brain for anything else to talk about, he found it, “why do you do that? My teammates – why do you call Court and I by our names but not the others?”

Heather looked at DJ in surprise. She hadn’t expected him to ask about that. After taking a moment to think about the best way to explain it, she shrugged, “I respect you. I respect Courtney. I don’t really respect the others. Like I said earlier, you and Courtney are the only two worth anything, and that’s how I show it.”

“How do you know we’re the only two worth anything, though?” DJ asked, “you’ve never played with us. Well, you’ve never played with her, and you didn’t seem to respect me very much during that last challenge.”

“I just know it, okay?” Heather snapped, crossing her arms over her chest, “I’ve watched you. Blonde one is okay, I suppose, but other blond one and juvie definitely aren’t. And, maybe I didn’t respect you very much during the last challenge because you were trying sabotage us! It’s almost like you wanted us to lose! But that’s over now. We are no longer teammates, and you are no longer trying to sabotage us. Therefore, I’m interested in you. And Courtney.”

Still not completely understanding how Heather could make these kind of judgements without really knowing them but not wanting to get into any further, DJ moved on, “what does it mean you’re interested in us?”

“It means I want to work with you,” Heather spoke slowly, as if he were a five year, something DJ didn’t think he deserved, “it means I want to work with you and Courtney and explore our options as a quartet, including Lindsay. I’m not quite ready to get rid of her yet.”

“What?” DJ’s head snapped towards Heather, “Heather, I’m flattered, really, but I don’t think it would work for me or Court. Thank you, but no.”

Heather sighed, rolling her eyes, “listen, I know you Killer Bass are all in an alliance together. You’ve been very obvious about it. I’m not asking you to ditch them and come with me. I’m asking you to explore your options with me. I think we could make a great team, and I’m usually right.”

DJ shook his head, “I just don’t think it would work out. Like you said, I have my alliance. I couldn’t do that to them, and I know Courtney wouldn’t. I don’t think she’d consider anything without Bridgette or Duncan.”

“Yes, her attachments to them are unfortunate,” Heather mused, “but I just want to see how things would work. You can’t deny we’d make a strong team. I’m great at strategy, everyone listens to Courtney, you’ve got the physical strength, and Lindsay mostly does whatever I tell her to. We could make it to the final three easily if we wanted to. And DJ, you can’t tell me you’re happy being the fifth wheel to the couples alliance.”

Dragging a hand down his face, DJ sighed, “it’s not the couples alliance. Bridgette and Geoff aren’t even together yet. I’m not worried about it.”

“Well, you should be,” Heather shifted until her body was facing his, her legs crossed, “it’s only a matter of time. You’re playing for fifth place, and I want better for you. You were a great number two for Courtney, and you could be an even greater number two for me. Think about it.”

“Thank you, but my answer is and will remain ‘no,’” DJ leaned back on one hand, “we have the next few votes planned, or Duncan and Courtney do. I have no problem being your friend, but I’m good on allies.”

“We’ll give it some time,” Heather smirked, “anything can happen in this game. You might need help one of these days, and you can come to me. I’m interested in working with you, and I get what I want.”

DJ’s mouth twitched upwards, “we’ll see. But, uh, let’s talk about something else. Tell me about the Screaming Gophers.”

Heather laughed, “why? So you can use this information to target us?” DJ just shrugged, a playful smile on his lips. “I don’t care. I have no problem giving away our secrets, or, all their secrets, anyway. See how agreeable I already am? This is what it’ll be like working with me!”

DJ rolled his eyes, now feeling much more comfortable around her, and listened as she shared all the not quite scandalous secrets of the Screaming Gophers. It had more to do with the game than he thought it would, but he was glad she wasn’t overtly trash talking them. The whole time she tried recruiting him to her side, but he was adamant that his answer was no.

In the girls’ cabin, Gwen and Leshawna were having a much needed heart to heart. After leaving the arts and crafts tent, Gwen had found Leshawna in the confessional and timidly asked if she could talk to her. She didn’t deserve to be forgiven, but she had to apologize. Leshawna agreed immediately, hoping this was their make-up.

Gwen sat on her bed, her eyes shifting around the cabins. Words had never been her strong suit, but this was important. “I’m sorry,” she blurted, “I’m sorry for getting mad at you and for holding a grudge and for everything that I’ve said to you.”

Leshawna, who was sitting on her own bed, smiled, “yeah? So we’re done with all this fightin’? We cool?”

“What?” Gwen’s eyes found Leshawna’s, “are we cool? Only if you want to be, but I would understand if you didn’t. I was terrible to you!”

“Course I want to be cool,” Leshawna playfully rolled her eyes, “why wouldn’t I? Gwen, we’re friends.”

“I mean, we were friends, but are we still? Leshawna, I haven’t had a conversation with you on a week! I’ve fought with you every time you’ve tried to talk to me! I’ve been worse than Heather. It can’t be that easy. You can’t forgive me like that.”

Leshawna laughed, standing up and walking over to Gwen’s bed, “girl, you’re crazy. And you’re lucky I love you. I can forgive whomever I want however I want. And I want to forgive you. Can I sit?” Gwen nodded, so she sat next to her friend, “I get it. You needed some time, and you’ve had it. I knew voting for Owen might make you mad, okay? I should have told you I was goin’ to do that. I’m sorry I didn’t.”

Gwen shook her head, “you don’t need to apologize! I should have heard you out one of the million times you tried to explain yourself. You didn’t even need to explain yourself! Leshawna… it’s a game. It shouldn’t be that big of a deal. Heather’s only that bad because I let her be that bad.” She looked around the room again. “So… why did you vote for Owen?”

“Heather got to me, I guess,” Leshawna sighed, “I got worried about those fish. Thought she could break them up later, which I don’t see happening. It’d take a miracle. I should have gotten rid of her. We had the votes.”

Gwen shrugged, “doesn’t matter. It happened, and I’ve been holding on to it. I’ve been letting Heather ruin our friendship. I’ve been letting her win. She’s loving this.”

Leshawna laughed again, “girl, I know. And we can’t have that. You and me are better as a team, against her. Glad you came to your senses.”

“I’m just happy you accepted my apology! I didn’t deserve that. Leshawna…” Gwen was overwhelmed with emotions and did something she usually wouldn’t: she pulled a surprised Leshawna into a hug. “You’re such a good person. Better than me.”

“Gwen, you okay?” Leshawna asked, mildly concerned. As nice as it was, Gwen wasn’t physically affectionate with anyone. The hug was a surprise, but she still slowly brought her arms around her.

Blinking back her embarrassment, Gwen started to pull away, “yeah, sorry… I just–” Leshawna tightened her grip on her, “–no you don’t! You just aren’t the touchy-feely type, but I don’t mind it. What’s gotten into you?”

Gwen opened her mouth to respond, then closed it again. What had gotten into her? Yes, she was overwhelmed with emotions, but that had never caused her to hug, or even touch, people before. Her mom and brother, sure, but not other people! Not friends. Her first hug of the summer didn’t even come until the last pre-merge challenge! From Bridgette! But, it had felt nice. And Geoff’s physical touch had felt nice earlier. It felt like someone cared.

“I guess I’ve been spending too much time with those fish,” Gwen laughed, “Bridgette and Geoff and their lack of physical boundaries.”

At that, Leshawna did pull away, but only enough so that she could look into her eyes, “when’ve you been hanging out with Geoff?” she asked, amusement in her voice, “that’s not a friendship I would have ever called!”

Gwen let out a light giggle, “after breakfast. He was actually the one who talked sense into me. He was sad that we weren’t friends anymore. Or just tired of all the fighting. Either way, he helped me see how difficult I’ve been recently. Wow, I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing! I’ve already forgiven you!” Leshawna pulled all the way away, “is that why DJ’s talkin’ to Heather right now? Does he think _she’ll_ apologize? Cos that ain’t happening.”

“I don’t know,” Gwen mused, “but they came to the cabin a little after breakfast. They said they wanted to shake things up, but I think they just wanted the fighting to stop. DJ said he wanted to hang out with Heather, and then Geoff dragged me to the arts and crafts tent and told me to get over myself.”

“There’s an arts and crafts tent? Since when?”

Gwen shrugged, “since always, apparently. And there’s actually arts and crafts materials in there. I didn’t know it existed until today, but I guess the bass have been using it for meetings? I’m not really sure. He said that’s where they talked about things. I don’t know if anyone has actually made anything in it.”

Shaking her head, Leshawna moved back to her own bed, “dang, the bass are interesting. Hope Trent’s finding out a lotta good stuff about them. ’Specially those two girls. Or that couple. Courtney, really.”

“There has to be a weakness there somewhere,” Gwen agreed, pushing herself off her bed, “I wanted to take another look at the arts and crafts tent, if you want to come with me. See what all they have and maybe make something for Trent. I miss him.”

Leshawna shrugged and stood up, “why the hell not. Not like there’s anything else to do. Besides, I’ve missed you. Gotta hang out with you while you let me.”

Gwen cringed and opened her mouth to apologize again, but Leshawna shook her head, “girl, no. Don’t say sorry again. I know you want to, but no. I was just messing with you.” She walked over to her friend and nudged her in the shoulder. “Come on, show me this arts and crafts tent.”

With that, the pair exited the cabin. On their walk across camp, they caught each other up on the big things in their life. They noticed that DJ and Heather were still at the dock together and wondered what those two could possibly be talking about. DJ was so nice, and Heather was evil incarnate! It didn’t make any sense.

Laughing about an inside joke, Gwen pushed the door to the arts and crafts tent open, Leshawna following right after her, “and this, Leshawna, is the arts and crafts tent. I’m actually impressed by everything in here. I wouldn’t have thought Chris would provide anything like this for us. Maybe he is a nice guy.”

Leshawna made a sound that was a mix between a laugh and a scoff, “not a chance.”

“You’re right! What was I thinking?” Gwen continued to laugh, not realizing how much she had missed her friend, “it’s Chris McLean we’re talking about! All he cares about is himself! There’s probably lead paint in all of this.”

“Hey, gotta get it for cheap, right?” Leshawna joked, and they burst into a fit of laughter. They were too busy having fun with each other that they failed to notice another person in the arts and crafts tent with them.

“Woah! Ladies, I’m glad to see you two gettin’ along!” Geoff stood up and walked around the table to greet the girls, “I knew you could do it! Gwen, proud of you!”

What? The moment Geoff spoke, both girls quieted their laughter. How did they not notice him there? Gwen cleared her throat and turned to face him, “oh, yeah. Thanks. I’m glad we’re getting along, too. I couldn’t have done it without you, Geoff.”

“Bullshit,” he grinned, “you totally could have! So, what brings you back to the arts and crafts tent? Happy to have you here! And Leshawna, this your first time?”

“I just wanted to check things out. I’m kind of an artist. I was thinking about making something for, uh, a friend,” Gwen explained while Leshawna nodded, “yeah. Just wanted to spend some time with my friend! Don’t know what you said to her, but thanks! I missed her.”

Geoff waved a hand and sat back down, “don’t thank me. I was just doin’ my duty!” He chuckled at the word. “Heh, duty. Anyway, like I said, I don’t like it when friends aren’t friends.” He turned back to Gwen. “What friend are you making somethin’ for? I making something for Bridge! Don’t know if you know this, but she’s kinda my girl.”

Leshawna stifled a laugh as she waggled her eye brows at Gwen. Looked like her and Geoff had the same idea. Knowing she was being made fun of, Gwen rolled her eyes. It wasn’t that big of a deal. Everyone knew she liked Trent just like everyone knew Geoff liked Bridgette. Secrets weren’t secrets on this island.

“Trent,” Gwen admitted, “I guess you could say he’s kind of my boy. What are you making for her?”

Instead of answering Gwen’s question, Geoff made a shocked noise, “Nooooo. Really? You and Trent? Shit. Since when? You together?”

Gwen let her mouth hang open. What? Apparently, not everyone knew she liked Trent. “No… we’re not, like, officially together, but I think we’re close.”

“Right on, dudette! ’M in the same boat as you with Bridge! Not together, but I’m ready. Just waiting for her. You think she likes me?”

Remembering all the trouble the haiku brought, Gwen let out a giggle, “yeah, Geoff, I do. What are you making her?”

“Just drawing her a lil’ picture!” Geoff pushed his piece of paper across the table, and both Gwen and Leshawna examined it. It was who they assumed to be Geoff and Bridgette sitting on the dock holding hands. It resembled an untalented child’s drawing, but it had a certain charm to it. Gwen gave him a thumbs up. “Nice. And I’m gonna write a lil’ note on the back. Last time I tried to make her somethin’ it didn’t turn out too well. I mess up a lot. But, like, enough of that! Tell me about Trent! Didn’t see that comin’.”

“Yeah, Gwen, tell him about Trent,” Leshawna taunted, a smile on her face, “I want to hear this, too.”

Gwen rolled her eyes as she sat down across from Geoff, “I don’t know. He’s just… he’s Trent. I like him, and I’m pretty sure he likes me. Nothing really more than that.”

Leshawna took the seat next to her, “it’s a little more than that. Those two are always killin’ me with their hidden glances. They need to get it together and get together already, you know?”

“Do I ever,” Geoff agreed, even though he didn’t know. He had never paid enough attention to Gwen or Trent to say how cute they were, but he had a soft spot for almost-relationships, being in one himself. “So, what’re you waitin’ for? Why haven’t you locked that down yet?”

“I just haven’t yet, okay,” Gwen looked down at the table, “why haven’t you locked down Bridgette yet? If you two like each other so much.” Her tone was bitter, and she meant for it to sting, but Geoff was unphased.

“Fair question! ’N I’m just waitin’ for her. Things didn’t go so great last time I made a big move, so I’m lettin’ her be the one to do it,” Geoff smiled warmly before frowning, “honestly though, I thought she would’ve by now, but that’s okay! We’re friends, and I love that!”

Gwen looked back up at him, “you want her to make a move? But isn’t that the guys’ job?”

“Dudette, no!” Geoff shot up from his seat, his arms gesturing wildly while Leshawna shook her head, “girl, no. Get with the times. It’s perfectly acceptable for a girl to make a move.”

“So, what? You think I should… do you think I should make a move? With Trent?” Gwen asked, “do you think he’d like that?”

Geoff shrugged, “I dunno. Don’t know anything the dude. Didn’t even know you liked him until, like, now. But yeah. Sometimes it’s nice when a girl, like, says what she wants. It’s scary to put everything on the line like that. It’s nice to not have to do that.”

Gwen chewed her lip as she contemplated this, sending a questioning look to Leshawna. Her friend, much like Geoff, just shrugged. This wasn’t her relationship. “He wouldn’t be, I don’t know, offended if I ask him out? Like, he won’t think I’m trying to steal his thunder or something?”

Geoff didn’t hesitate to shake his head, “nah. I know I’d think it was hot, but it’s your life. Do whatever.” He started putting away the supplies he had used. “But my advice? Go for it. You’ve got nothin’ to lose. If he doesn’t go for it then it’s his loss.”

“That’s certainly something to think about,” Gwen mused, “Leshawna?”

“What? You want me to have an opinion on this?” Leshawna asked, to which Gwen just nodded, “well… Geoff’s not wrong. I’d go for it, too. You two crazy kids have been pining after each other since day one. It’s time.”

It was time, Gwen thought. Summer was already half over, and her and Trent were no more together than they were at the start of it. Sure, they understood that they liked each other, but what good was it if they weren’t together? She had never considered it before, but maybe she did need to make a move. Take her future into her own hands. She opened her mouth to comment on it, but, before she could, Geoff spoke.

“Well, it was nice chattin’ with you ladies, but I’ll let y’all do your thing,” Geoff picked up the drawing he made for Bridgette, “good luck with everything!”

Both girls gave him a goodbye, and he left the arts and crafts room. Alone, Gwen and Leshawna talked about what Geoff had said about Gwen making a move, something they were now both on board with. When he got back from the reward, she would do it. Now, she just had to figure out what to make him. It was no longer just a lighthearted present and sign of her affection but a symbol of their potential relationship. It had to be good.

The rest of the morning passed smoothly. For the first time since the end of the last challenge, no one was arguing. When it came time for lunch, everyone met back at the dining hall. The girls sat at the old gophers’ table, Leshawna and Gwen on one side and Heather on the other, and the guys sat at the old bass table.

After lunch, Gwen and Leshawna headed back to the arts and crafts tent so that Gwen could finish Trent’s present, and Heather retreated back to her cabin for an afternoon nap. The girls occupied, DJ and Geoff went back to their cabin to cool down.

“Dude, it was so cool. They’re, like, friends again. And it’s because of me!” Geoff laid across his bed on his stomach, his legs in the air behind him, “like, I’m not gonna take all the credit, but I’m feelin’ pretty good about myself right about now.”

DJ shook his head and let out a short laugh, “good for you, man. Happy they’re friends now. Nice job.”

Geoff smiled widely, his eyes beaming, “thanks. All in a day’s work. What about you, though? How was Heather? Scary as you thought it’d be?”

“Nah, it was cool. She’s less intimidating when there’s no challenge going on and no one else is around,” DJ sat on the edge of the empty bunk across from Geoff’s, his legs splayed out between the two, “she actually said she’s interested in working with me, which is crazy. She wants me be in an alliance with her or something.”

“What? Dude! Why?” Geoff quickly sat up and mirrored DJ’s position, “that’s so random. You gonna do it?”

DJ let his mouth drop slightly, “of course, I’m not going to do it! I’m already in an alliance! With you! I don’t want to play the game without you or the others. And Heather still doesn’t seem like a very nice person. I wouldn’t be able to trust her.”

Flipping back to his stomach, Geoff shrugged, “oh, right. Duh. But, like, why does she want to work with you? You’re not, like, secret friends with her are you? Not that it would bad if you were! Just surprising. And confusing.”

DJ couldn’t help the laughter that came as he shook his head, “no, man, we’re not secret friends. And it is odd. She said she’s interested in my gameplay or respects me or something. It’s not just me. She wants Courtney too, which at least makes some sense. I don’t think I’ve done anything that great.”

“That’s so weird. Fuck. Think Court’ll work with her?”

DJ shook his head and hated that he wasn’t surprised by this question, “Do I think Courtney will work with Heather? The same Heather she’s made no secret she doesn’t like? To her face, even? No. It won’t happen. Especially since she made it clear Bridgette wouldn’t be joining us. Court wouldn’t do anything without her. It’s not even in the discussion.”

Geoff was quiet for a long moment, closing his eyes and dropping his cheek to the mattress. Being able to tell he was going through something, DJ waited.

“Fuck, man. Bridge. I miss her,” Geoff picked his head up and rested it on his hand.

“I know,” DJ crossed the room and sat down next to Geoff, “you’ve mentioned it a few times.” He patted his shoulder. “She’ll be back tomorrow, right?”

Geoff nodded, “right. Sorry for bein’ all dramatic, but I just miss her so much. I made her a present today. It’s kinda lame, but I wanted to show her how much I missed ’er. You think she misses? Think she’s spendin’ all her time thinkin’ about me?”

DJ sighed, not wanting to give his friend an honest answer. No, he didn’t think Bridgette missed Geoff, at least not as much as Geoff missed her, and she definitely wasn’t spending all her time thinking about him. But it wasn’t a bad thing. She was undoubtably busy with the reward and her friends, and she wasn’t the type to dwell. Geoff wouldn’t get that, but he couldn’t lie to him.

“Probably not, bud,” DJ said. Geoff groaned and dropped his head again. “No, man. Not like that. She’s probably having fun with Lindsay and Courtney and everything. Do you want her to be thinking about you instead?” Geoff shook his head into the mattress. “Didn’t think so. You know how much she’s missed Courtney. They’re probably getting to spend a lot of good time together. No time to think about you, and that’s good.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Geoff slowly sat up, “but you don’t think Court’s… you know… with Dunc there… and they’re… you know… together? Would she even spend time with Bridge?”

DJ rubbed his temples, “no, I don’t know, and I don’t think I want to. And, please, could you give Court an ounce of credit here? I don’t think she’s ignoring Bridgette to do… whatever you’re implying. I think the two of them are finally getting a chance to relax together without _all_ the distractions of camp. Yeah, Duncan’s there, but it’s a different, less stressful environment. They’re best friends.”

“They are best friends,” Geoff agreed in a quiet voice before turning to face DJ, “can I tell you a dumb secret? Sometimes I think Bridge likes Court more than me. Like, if she had the choice, she’d always choose her over me and hang out with her instead. I don’t know if we’re ever gonna get together. It kinda sucks, but it’s whatever.”

“That’s not dumb” DJ assured as he patted Geoff’s shoulder, “I think that’s perfectly valid. They’re really close. Have you talked to her about this?”

“Nooooooo” Geoff shook his head, “why’d I do that? I’m tryin’ to not pressure her into anything, y’know? And, like, it’s all chill. I just like her so much, and I’m tired of waiting. I want her, but I don’t know if she wants to be wanted. And Dunc didn’t help anything.”

At the mention of their friend, DJ had to repress a sigh, “how? How didn’t he help? Did you actually go to him with this? Geoff, you know he doesn’t care about you and Bridgette, right?”

Geoff pouted slightly but still nodded, “yeah, but I thought this had to do with him, too. I just asked if he was ever scared that our girlfriends were secretly in love with each other. First he told me not to call Bridge my girlfriend, then he said that he’s not worried about anything but maybe I should be. And then he was kinda pissy with me for the rest of the day. I think he didn’t like that.”

“Forget it – whatever he said, just forget it,” DJ advised, “he was probably just mad because you spoke out of turn about his relationship and insinuated that it was anything less than perfect. You know how he gets. I wouldn’t let those words hold any weight. I’m sure you have nothing to worry about. Bridgette and Courtney definitely aren’t secretly in love with each other, I promise.

“Shit. Dude, why are you the smartest person I know? I just need to listen to you all the time I guess,” Geoff leaned back on his hands, “let’s talk about somethin’ different. I’m tired of bein’ all emotional.”

DJ laughed and did as Geoff requested, changing the subject to something a little more lighthearted.

As the rest of the day went on, nothing of importance happened. The afternoon and early evening had been quiet, and there were no incidents or fighting at dinner. It was almost as if there was a silent agreement between Heather and Gwen and Leshawna to keep to themselves, something the guys were very happy about. Their last day before the next challenge was going to be peaceful after all.

Soon enough, it was time for bed, and, for the first time since that morning, the girls were alone together. Hopefully, things would go much better this time. There was still a tension in the air, but it was no where near the level it had been earlier, and they wanted to keep it that way. It had been a good day for everyone, and there was no point in ruining that.

From her spot on her bed, Heather looked between her two teammates, feeling agreeable, “tomorrow’s going to come like a freight train. Double the girls in here.”

Leshawna glanced at Heather as she tried to decide if this was a trap. It was never easy to decipher if the queen bee was picking a fight or just generally commenting on something. She did know, however, that the longer it took for her to answer, the more likely it would become an argument. Because or that, Leshawna just shrugged, “girl, I know. There’s not gonna be any room to breathe. I’m not looking forward to that.”

“I don’t understand why we had to merge cabins,” Heather agreed, “things were fine in here before, or as fine as they could be, but this is going to change things so much. God, it’ll be like the beginning days with Beth and Izzy!”

“Wow, I forgot how much that sucked,” Gwen said, joining the conversation. If Heather was going to play nice, there was no reason to sit out. “At least Courtney and Bridgette don’t seem crazy like Izzy was?”

Leshawna laughed, “not by a long shot. She was something else, wasn’t she? It won’t even be close to that bad.”

Joining in with Leshawna’s laughing, Heather smiled, “I don’t miss crazy girl at all. You two are actually a lot better than her. Don’t get me wrong, I still think Gwen’s a weirdo goth girl and, Leshawna, we’ll never be friends, but Izzy was a whole different thing. She made you two look normal.”

“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Leshawna joked, rolling her eyes, “and I agree! I’d much rather have you around than Izzy. Girl talked too much.”

“Too much as in all the time?” Gwen laughed, “she never shut up! And I’m pretty sure she’s a pathological liar.”

“Obviously. Who in their right mind would believe she ever did any of that stuff she said she did?” Heather stood and walked over to the lights switch. “Are we ready for bed, ladies? I’d understand if you needed some extra sleep so that you don’t absolutely blow it tomorrow, not that I care anymore. We’re no longer teammates.”

Leshawna nodded, “and thank God for that, even if I’m pretty sure it’s you who needs extra sleep tonight.”

Heather flipped the switch, “agree to disagree. Goodnight ladies.” Then, she got back in bed.

“Goodnight,” both Gwen and Leshawna responded.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, sorry this took so long. I guess a month and a half isn't actually that long, but it feels like a long time. Also, sorry it's a little short. I'm not going to make any time promises on the next one, but it should be longer. It should also be easier. I think this one was so difficult for me to write because I didn't have Courtney to fall back on. I'm excited to write her again. 
> 
> The next chapter we will get back into the swing of the game! We'll have two returnees, but it might be a little different than in canon. I wonder who they'll be. We'll also see how relationships form between all the campers. I'm excited.
> 
> As always, please leave a kudos or comment if you liked it! I always appreciate them, and I love reading about what you like about my story. You can find me on tumblr at i-wish-i-was-kidding. I post story updates, headcanons, make moodboards, and just have fun. I'd love to see you over there.


	14. Rules Aren't There for a Reason

“I so wish we didn’t have to go back to the island,” Lindsay sighed, “it’s so much better here with the big beds and yummy food and nice showers! I want to stay here. Where there are no bugs. There are so many bugs on the island.”

Bridgette rubbed her friend’s back. They had already gone through this twice, once last night and once at breakfast, and she wasn’t surprised they were going through it again. The reward had been almost too nice, and it was hard to let go of it. Some were having a harder time than others.

“I know, baby,” Bridgette comforted, “it is really nice here, but we have to go back to real life now.”

“But the island isn’t even real life!” Lindsay argued, “so why not stay here? It has everything I need! My friends, a shower, air conditioning… it’s the perfect place for me. For us!”

Closing her eyes, Bridgette let out a long sigh. She got it, she did. Why should they leave this nice boat with nice amenities to go back to the shitty island to risk their lives for money? It felt like a punishment, but they were going to dock at any moment now, and Lindsay needed to get her head back into the game.

“Lindsay, it’s going to be fine, I promise. Don’t you want to win the $100,000?” Bridgette asked, hoping to appeal to her materialistic side.

Lindsay pouted, and Bridgette resisted the urge to laugh. “But $100,000 dollars isn’t even that much money,” she whined, “especially not when I have to do all this weird stuff to win it.” It was quiet for a moment, and then, “it just sucks that we have to go back,” Lindsay mumbled, “Heather’s there. It was so nice being away from her.”

“Oh, Linds, no,” Bridgette face softened, “it’s okay. There are no more teams, and you have me and Court and our guys. Please don’t worry about Heather. I’m sorry, I didn’t even think about that.”

“I know,” Lindsay turned away from the other blonde and looked out across the lake, which was no longer so spacious. She could see the dock and their other castmates waiting on it. Forcing her eyes shut, she turned back around. “Goodbye, beautiful cruise ship. I’m going to miss you so much.”

Bridgette smiled and picked her bag up off the floor. It was time. The boat docked, and they were officially back at camp. Grabbing Lindsay’s hand, they followed everyone off the boat. As they went, she whispered reassuring words to her friend.

Once they were back on land, Bridgette didn’t have a moment to even let go of Lindsay’s hand before she heard a loud, “Bridge!” Looking around for the source, she saw Geoff running towards her. What?

“Bridge! Court! You’re back!” Geoff pulled the two girls into a joint hug, “please never leave me here alone again! I missed you _so_ much. It sucked without you here.”

Completely confused and a little startled, Bridgette just went with it, “oh, um, sure… I missed you, too, Geoff.”

Right away, she felt Courtney’s eyes on her, silently judging her, and she knew exactly why. She was supposed to be distancing herself from a potential relationship, but she couldn’t do it now! He was clearly emotional! Bridgette just mouthed “ _later_ ” to her.

Courtney shook her head but thankfully let it go. Then, she cleared her throat. “As much as I… enjoy this, Geoff, I’d appreciate it, and I think Bridgette would appreciate it, if you’d let us go.”

“Right, sorry, got a lil’ swept up,” Geoff released the girls but didn’t move away from them, “I just missed you two so much! It wasn’t the same without you. Like, at all. I’m so happy you’re back.”

“I’m happy we’re back, too,” Bridgette lied again, only feeling a little guilty about it, “I missed you on the reward.” She heard Courtney gasp and cringed slightly. This was going to bite her in the ass later, but she didn’t see what else she could do now. So maybe she didn’t like him, but he just looked so happy. She couldn’t crush him yet.

Geoff’s smile widened, and the lie almost felt worth it. Looking around, she saw that Courtney had already left her for Duncan, and Lindsay had been swept away by Heather. She was on her own with this.

“Really?” Geoff asked, and Bridgette nodded, committing fully to the lie, “what a relief! I didn’t know if you would or not. I made you somethin’ while you were gone. Can’t wait to give it to you!”

Shit, Bridgette thought, the word running through her head several times. He was relieved that she had missed him. He didn’t know if she would. He made her something. Shit. Suddenly, she didn’t care that Courtney had ditched her because she really did not want to hear what she would have to say about this. (Not that she wouldn’t tell her later, but she needed to process this first. Shit.)

Bridgette opened her mouth, then closed it again. She didn’t want to – couldn’t – lie to him anymore. He didn’t deserve that. But, what could she say? Thankfully, that’s when Chris spoke over the loudspeaker.

“ _Welcome back to Camp Wawanakwa, everyone! Breaks over, and it’s time for the game to continue! I, for one, am excited to get back into the swing of things. I have an awesome challenge prepared for us today_ ,” Chris let out one of his more obnoxious laughs, “ _one thing first: we’re getting some company today!_ ”

The campers all shared confused looks. Company? They had never had company before. Then, a loud horn honked, catching their attention. A boat was coming towards them, one of their former castmates standing at the bow. What was going on? Why was this person coming back? They had already been voted out! Everyone reacted differently.

The former Killer Bass quickly came together, whispering their disbelief. They voted this person out! All of them. If they were back in the game, which was a possibility, they could be back with a vengeance. Bridgette was especially worried. While it had been a group effort, she spearheaded the effort. Today wasn’t going well at all.

The former Screaming Gophers were less concerned, excluding one. They weren’t the ones who voted them out. The exception was Lindsay, who was now crying.

“Is this real?” Lindsay whispered, unable to tear her eyes away from the boat and it’s occupant, “please tell me this is real. Please. Someone.”

“ _Oh, it’s real_ ,” Chris announced, “ _back, by popular audience demand, it’s Tyler!_ ”

A smile slowly spread across Lindsay’s face as she rushed to the edge of the dock. She had thought today was going to suck, with the reward ending and having to see Heather and it being a challenge day, but Tyler was back! Her boyfriend! It didn’t feel real, and she still wasn’t sure if it was. Chris lied all the time.

The boat docked, and Tyler threw his luggage over the edge before getting off. He stood in front of Lindsay and held his arms open for her. Right away, she jumped into them, her own arms clasping around his neck and her legs tightly wrapping around his waist. Then, not caring about their audience, she kissed him. Hard.

“Tyler! I can’t believe you’re here!” Lindsay squealed, pulling away for a moment, “you’re back! Oh, Tyler.”

“Believe it, babe, I’m here. I missed you so much,” Tyler said, leaning in for another kiss, much to the annoyance of their castmates and host.

“Could you two stop sucking face for one moment?” Heather marched up to the couple and tried to force Lindsay down, “I’m trying to keep the crappy breakfast down, thanks.” Achieving her goal, Lindsay’s feet now planted firmly on the ground, Heather smirked to herself before turning towards the loudspeaker. “No way is Tyler an audience favorite. He’s, like, super boring!” she yelled.

Both Lindsay and Tyler let out an indignant “hey!” as Chris cackled over the speaker, “ _not really, but I thought he could cause some drama! Especially for those former bass! And another coupe? That’s a free added bonus. Also returning to camp it’s…_ ” he paused for dramatic effect, “ _IZZY!_ ”

Just like that, time seemed to stop. Tyler was one thing, but he wasn’t a very bad thing. Izzy, however, was a different story. A scary one. Everyone knew about Izzy’s flair for dramatics, including those who weren’t on her team, and no one wanted to deal with that again.

They heard her before they saw her, screaming at the top of her lungs. Looking around, they spotted a blur of orange and green swinging towards them from a vine. Where it came from was the least of their questions.

“Hey guys! It’s good to be back at camp! Even though I never actually left the island. I’ve been living in the woods all this time!” Izzy said, her arms gesturing wildly.

Gwen held up a finger, “but I thought the RCMP hunted you down!”

Izzy waved a hand, smiling wildly at her, “they tried! But, being a wilderness survivor, I was swift footed and avoided capture. Once I was safe among my animal brethren, it was just me against the harsh elements.”

“You call this harsh?” Leshawna interjected, getting swept up in all of it, “it’s been warm and sunny all week.”

“Not where I was! But luckily I was able to take refuge in the beaver dam!” Izzy smiled to herself, remembering something the others weren’t quite sure actually happened. “Yeah, I befriended the family of beavers who lived there, and together we foraged for nuts and berries! Boy, I could use a bag of nachos right now. So! What’s new with you guys?”

Instead of answering her, her castmates turned back to the loudspeaker, and Gwen voiced what they were all thinking, “I thought you said once someone was voted off, they could never come back! Ever!”

It was quiet for a moment before, “ _did I? Don’t remember_ ,” Chris laughed.

“Yes!” Gwen argued, “you must have said it, what, twenty times? Chris! This isn’t okay! It’s against the rules!”

“ _Oh, Gwen, when are you going to realize the rules don’t apply to everything?”_ Chris asked, shutting her, and everyone, up, “ _well, campers, as fun as this has been, it’s time to move on! Let’s give Tyler and Izzy a warm welcome as they move back in, and then everyone meet at the amphitheater in thirty minutes. That’s where you’ll learn all about this week’s challenge. McLean out!_ ” 

The campers went to their cabins, each of them moving at their own speed. Izzy lead them, excitedly chattering to poor Leshawna and Gwen about nothing. Once they got there, the guys and girls separated, Lindsay reluctantly leaving Tyler. She didn’t need Heather trying to give away her bed again, and Tyler had to figure things out with the guys.

Everyone inside, the girls got to business. There were seven of them and eight beds. Izzy was moving in, and, while technically already moved in, Bridgette and Courtney had yet to actually spend a night. Worse, only one bottom bunk was available.

“Izzy! Welcome back to the cabin!” Heather smiled and clasped her hands together, the disdain in her voice masked with over-politeness. “We’ve missed having you around so much!”

“I’ve missed being around! It seriously sucked sleeping outside! Like you wouldn’t believe.” Izzy either failed to notice Heather’s fakeness or was flat-out ignoring it, opting to carry on a conversation instead. “Is my bed still available? Because I can just sleep there! I totally understand if it isn’t though! I can just sleep on the roof.”

Heather forced out a laugh, “still the same Izzy! No one has moved to your bed. But, if you wanted to, you could still sleep on the roof. No one is going to stop you.”

Leshawna nodded, completely agreeing with Heather for once, “yeah, girl. We support you in all your endeavors. Sleep in the cabin, sleep on the roof, it doesn’t matter to us!”

Looking between the two girls, Izzy’s eyes narrowed, causing them to share a concerned glance. Hopefully, that wasn’t the completely wrong thing to say. They never knew with her. Thankfully, her face split into a giant grin as she ran up and wrapped an arm around each of them, pulling them close.

“Aw, guys! That’s so nice! And I’m not just saying that because this is the first human interaction I’ve had in three weeks! I’m really touched!”

Leshawna nodded, “no problem. Happy we could figure it out. So… where are you going to sleep?”

Izzy let her arms fall to her side and both Leshawna and Heather took several steps back. “Haven’t decided!” She grabbed her bag, which was left at the door, and threw it onto the bunk above Lindsay’s. “It all depends on the energy.”

“Well, that’s settled, I guess,” Heather shook her head before turning her attention to Courtney and Bridgette, who were trying to blend into the wall. Neither wanted to be here. “Courtney! Bridgette! It’s also nice to have you two back. And, of course, Lindsay.” She smiled at the blonde. “Have you two put any more thought into which bunks you’ll take? I know we were having trouble with it before.”

“Uhm, yeah, sure,” Bridgette quickly picked up her bag and shuffled over to the empty bottom bunk. It was an easy choice, either there or above Heather. “I’ll just sleep here, if that’s okay with everyone.”

Her cabinmates hummed approval. While Bridgette’s bunk had previously been a big deal, no one cared anymore.

Heather turned to Courtney, “and did you want the bunk above mine or above Bridgette’s?”

Courtney gave Heather an unimpressed look, “I’m still not sleeping in this cabin. I don’t need either bunk.”

“Right, of course!” Heather internally cursed. That was the exact opposite of what she wanted! Courtney needed to be in the cabin if she was to secure an alliance with her. “So, that’s it. Court, while you may not be sleeping here, I did really want to talk to you about something. Would you mind if you and I took a quick sidebar? There’s still twenty minutes until the challenge.”

“Don’t call me Court, and no, I don’t want to do that at all. Bridgette and I have plans right now, actually.” Courtney walked over to the surfer and grabbed her hand. “So, we’re going to go. Bye, everyone.” Then, without giving Heather a chance to stop her, she pulled Bridgette out of the cabin.

Not believing that just happened, Heather’s jaw dropped for a slight moment before gaining control of her muscles. Her face hardened as her mouth closed, her eyes steely. She marched over to her bed and sat down. “Lindsay. Come here. I have some things I need to share with you.”

Lindsay cringed as she slowly turned to face Heather, “I’m actually going to go see Tyler now. It’s been so long.”

“No, you aren’t! I haven’t seen you in, like, three days,” Heather glared at her friend, “come here.”

Lindsay shook her head, “and I haven’t seen Tyler in, like, a lot longer than three days. It’s been weeks! We can talk later, I promise! Right now I just really want to see him. I’m not asking.”

Heather crossed her arms over her chest, “what do you mean, you’re not asking? Lindsay!”

“She means she isn’t asking,” Gwen said, sliding up next to Lindsay. She would normally be the last one to come to her aide, but she had to this time. She understood. “Lindsay and I are going to see the guys. I want to see Trent.”

“Gwennie, this has absolutely nothing to do with you,” Heather stood up and looked the goth up and down, “if you want to go see Trent and give him whatever the fuck is in your pocket, that’s your own business. No one cares that much. Don’t be so dramatic.”

Gwen returned her glare, “I’m not the one being dramatic right now. Come on, Lindsay, let’s go,” she said before turning and walking out the door. Lindsay ran after her.

Groaning, Heather threw herself onto her bed. “Neither of you say anything about this, or I swear to God…” she threated, burying her head in her pillow.

“Won’t hear anything from me,” Leshawna laughed, turning to Izzy, “so, what’s going on? You missed this?”

Izzy just shrugged, “who cares! Where’s… that one girl sleeping? Who’s not sleeping here? Is it the roof? Because I claimed it already!” In response, Leshawna just sighed and walked out. Heather could deal with Izzy herself.

Meanwhile, the guys were having an easier time. It took thirty seconds and minimal conversation for Tyler to reclaim his old bunk, the bottom one across from Geoff, and for Trent to throw his stuff on the bed next to that one. No one cared where anyone else slept, and, although they weren’t all friends, they were all friendly.

Everything taken care of, they settled into a comfortable silence. There were several conversations that needed to happen, but no one wanted prying ears around. Instead, they just lounged in their beds as the waited for it to get closer to the challenge time.

Then, there was a knock on the door. Geoff, being the closest, opened it and found Gwen and Lindsay.  “Ladies! What’s up? What brings you by?”

“I was wondering if Tyler wanted to hang out with me,” Lindsay rocked on her heels, looking around Geoff to her boyfriend. She caught his eye and waved, watching happily as a grin lit up his features. “Tyler! Come here!”

The boy in question quickly joined them at the door. Before he even had a chance to greet Lindsay, she grabbed his hand and dragged him away from the cabin. They had time to make up for.

Them gone, Geoff turned to Gwen, “you here for Trent?”

Gwen nodded, pulling the mini guitar sculpture she made him out of her pocket, “can you get him?”

“Yeah, hang on a minute,” Geoff said, turning his head back, “Trent! Your girl’s here!” Then, he turned back to Gwen, “good luck! You’ve got this no doubt.”

“Thanks,” Gwen laughed as she tried to stop the oncoming blush and stuck the guitar sculpture back into her pocket.

A few seconds later, Geoff was replaced by Trent. He stepped onto the porch, and the door closed behind him. “Gwen! I guess you’re my girl now! How are you?”

Gwen gave him a small smile and ducked her head, “I’m good. Can we go for a walk? I wanted to talk to you.”

“Yeah, definitely,” Trent returned her smile, “I wanted to talk to you, too, so this is actually perfect! I missed you while I was on reward. Also, I learned a lot of stuff about Courtney and Duncan and Bridgette. But first, how were things here?”

“You don’t want to hear about that,” Gwen started walking, no destination in mind, and Trent followed, “a lot of fighting. Leshawna and I made up. I talked to Geoff some. It was boring.”

“You and Leshawna made up?” Trent asked. Gwen just nodded, “That’s good! I hoped you would. Do you want to hear about the reward now or later? We needed to figure out how we’re going to get Courtney out. I don’t think Bridgette, Duncan, or Lindsay are going to help.”

Gwen shrugged, “later. I actually made you something while you were gone and wanted to give it to you.” She pulled something out of her pocket, and Trent tried not to seem too interested. “It’s just a little guitar because you play guitar. I made it in the arts and crafts tent.”

Taking it out of her hands, Trent looked at it fondly before sticking it in his pocket, “thanks! I didn’t know we had an arts and crafts tent. I really like it!”

“You’re welcome,” Gwen said. Then, she took a deep breath. The easy part was over, and now it was time to confess her feelings. “There was kinda something else, too.”

Trent looked at her, “yeah?”

Gwen nodded. They had reached the forest, and she was glad for it. The further away they were from everyone else while they had this conversation, they better. Though both Geoff and Leshawna had assured her that he felt the same way, she was still nervous.

“You’d say we’ve become pretty close since the start of the summer, right?” Gwen carefully looked in front of her.

“Uhm, yeah? We’re really good friends,” Trent’s voice was confused, “why? Did I do something?”

Gwen’s face snapped to his, “what? No! You didn’t do anything, at least not recently. Trent, what if I told you wanted to be more than really good friends?”

“Like best friends? Because you _are_ my best friend on this island, Gwen. I just didn’t want to say because I know Leshawna is probably yours,” Trent said. It almost sounded like she wanted to be in a relationship with him, but he wouldn’t let himself get excited. It was probably nothing.

Sighing, Gwen shook her head, “not like best friends. I was actually thinking more than that, even.” Trent’s eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to say something, but Gwen kept talking. “I really missed you while you were on the reward. I kept thinking about how much better things would be if you were at camp, too.

“Things have been kind of shaky between us in the past, but recently they’ve been really good. I want it to be better. I don’t want to be your best friend, even though that is really nice. I like you. I want to be your girlfriend. And I hope you want to be boyfriend. If you don’t, I get it. I’ll just go back to camp and never look at you again. God, I’m so embarrassed,” she closed her eyes and stopped walking, “I shouldn’t have done this. Trent, nevermi…”

“Gwen, stop talking,” Trent interrupted, grabbing her hand, “that sounds really nice. I’d like that, too.”

Opening an eye, peeked over at him, “really?”

“Really,” Trent confirmed, “I like you, too. I’m glad you said something.”

“I’m glad I said something, too,” Gwen opened both of her eyes, letting out a sigh of relief, “I was kinda nervous. The guy is usually the one who makes the move, so I didn’t know how you’d feel about me doing it. Or if you even wanted a move to be made.”

“I did, I promise. I’m sorry for taking so long and forcing you to have to do it,” Trent started walking again, Gwen going with him, “but I’m secretly relieved that I don’t have to do it. It’s scary. Thank you.”

Gwen smiled at him, “you’re welcome. So, uh, do you want to tell me about the reward and everything?”

Trent nodded and launched into a detailed account of the past three days. He knew now more than ever that Courtney was the best option for him and Gwen, but he didn’t know where he would find the extra votes. So many people liked her.

Soon enough, it was time for the challenge, and everyone gathered at the amphitheater. There was makeshift stadium seating with desks on a corner of the stage and a spinning wheel in the middle. The campers couldn’t tell what was on it, but it couldn’t be anything good.

Chris explained the challenge, which was simple enough in theory. They had to endure different painful situations for ten seconds or they were out. There was also a beautiful reward for the last one standing: a private trailer with a nice bed and hot shower.

Duncan was called up first, no explanation given, and Chris spun the wheel for him. It landed on turtle puck shots (which had to be animal cruelty), and he finished it without complication. Then, it was Lindsay’s turn.

Bouncing to the center of the stage, Lindsay stood next to Chris. He spun the wheel, and it landed on marshmallow waxing. She smiled. Waxing was nothing compared to some of the other challenges, and it was something she had quite a bit of experience with.

“Oh, I so need this!” Lindsay exclaimed, “I’ve been dealing with nasty razor stubble for weeks. This is good.”

Chef just rolled his eyes before dropping the marshmallow wax on her face. She took it like a champ. From the crowd, Tyler yelled, “come on, Linds! You got it!” though his encouragement wasn’t needed. The ten seconds finished, and Chef removed the wax. Immediately she touched her face, smiling at its smoothness.

“Is it already over? That was nothing!” Lindsay stood up from the table, “I can’t believe how smooth that is! Thanks, Chris!”

“Sure, Lindsay. Glad this challenge is fun for you. That’s really what I was going for,” Chris deadpanned as she sat back down between Tyler and Bridgette, “oh well. Since you didn’t even complain once, you get to choose who goes next!”

Lindsay beamed, happy that she kicked ass in the first challenge, before she realized just what that meant. She had to pick the next person! They could be eliminated because of her! She didn’t want that. “No thanks.”

Chris shook his head, “sorry. You have to. Them’s the rules. So, who’s it going to be?”

No! She didn’t want to do this! Lindsay liked everyone and didn’t want to be the reason anyone got out! And, the one person she would choose, she couldn’t! Heather would be so mad. Looking at Tyler, he just shrugged. He didn’t want to piss anyone off so soon after getting there. Lindsay sighed and turned to Bridgette. She offered the same gesture as Tyler.

“Do I really have to?” Lindsay asked, to which Chris nodded. She sighed again, her eyes still trained on the other blonde. “okay, then. I guess, if I have to, I’ll choose…” She closed her eyes and decided she would just say the first name she thought of. “Bridgette. I choose Bridgette.” Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was Bridgette, and she realized her mistake. “Wait! No! I don’t want to choose Bridgette! Can I pick someone else?”

“Already said the name,” Chris grimaced, though it was clear he was enjoying this, “Bridgette, come on up and see what you get!”

Lindsay stood up, “no! Please? Chris, I don’t want Bridgette to get out.”

“It’s too late, Lindsay. You said the name,” Chris repeated while Bridgette grabbed Lindsay’s hand and stood up, “hey, it’s okay. I can do this. I’m not getting out, don’t worry about it. I’m not mad.”

“Are you sure?” Lindsay’s free hand found Bridgette’s, and she squeezed them, “because I’m really sorry.”

Bridgette smiled, “I know, babe. We’re good. Don’t worry.”

Lindsay gave Bridgette’s hand another squeeze before letting go of them, “okay. Thank you.” She sat back down. “You’re going to beat this challenge. I know it.”

“Bridgette! I’m waiting!” Chris snapped, interrupting their nice moment. Bridgette just rolled her eyes and started towards the center of the stage. “And Lindsay, you might not want to cheer her on so much. Because, if she wins, you’re out! Did I forget to mention that earlier?” Both Lindsay and Bridgette nodded. “Of course I did. If your victim completes their challenge, then you’re out! Either way someone’s done. Now come on.”

Sharing a final look at Lindsay, Bridgette walked down the steps. Well, that sucked. When Bridgette finally made it to the center of the stage, Chris smiled.

“Nice of you to finally join us up here. Would you like to roll the wheel or should I?”

“I’ll do it,” Bridgette reached up and gave the wheel a tug, watching as it landed on “ _LEECHES_.”

“Nice! Leeches! Let’s do it!” Chris motioned for Chef to get it ready, “for this one, you’ll have to sit in a barrel of leeches for ten seconds! Be careful, they like to latch on. Hope you don’t lose too much blood here,” he laughed.

Bridgette sighed but didn’t complain. She didn’t like that they were using animals for any challenge, but it wasn’t the time to say anything about it. Instead, she needed to prepare. Leeches sucked, both literally and figuratively, a fact she knew firsthand.

It took a minute, but Chef filled the barrel up with water. He would drop the leeches in after she got in. It was time! Bridgette channeled all the positive vibes around her, and grabbed onto the barrel, intending on climbing in.

However, before she could, someone from the audience stopped her. “Bridge! Wait!” Geoff stood up, and Bridgette gapped at him. What was he doing? “I’ll do it for you! Chris, can I do that?”

Chris groaned, annoyed that this was taking longer than necessary, “yeah, fine, whatever. Just hurry up. We need to get on with this.” He groaned again, mumbling something about teenagers under his breath.

Bridgette turned, her hands still on the barrel, “are you sure?”

“I’m totally sure!” Geoff walked down the steps and joined her and Chris, “don’t want you to have to do it!”

“But I can,” Bridgette hands dropped from the barrel, and she took a small step away from it.

“I know, Bridge! But I wanna do this for you,” Geoff’s hands found the barrel and he hoisted himself up, “I don’t want you to be the one who gets Lindsay out. I’ll do it! I know she’s your friend.”

Bridgette watched as he descended into the water and then nodded, “okay. Thanks, Geoff. This is really sweet of you.” She gave him an apologetic smile as she walked back up to her seat. While she was happy she didn’t have to risk either getting out herself or getting Lindsay out, she needed to put space between herself and him. Geoff doing this for her only brought them closer, and she knew it.

Chef dumped the leeched into the water, and Geoff’s reaction was instant. His shut his eyes tightly, and he clenched his teeth together. Chances were, he wasn’t going to last.

Sure enough, four second later, Geoff flew out of the bucket, shaking his arms and legs to get all the leeches off. He didn’t even make it halfway! Bridgette closed her eyes. She hadn’t asked him to do this, but she still felt bad. He was out, and he definitely intended this as a romantic gesture.

Since this was the first person to fail a challenge, Chris reminded the campers of the punishment. They would be sent to the dining hall, or the Losers’ Hangout, where they couldn’t watch the rest of the challenge.

The next several rounds of the challenge passed quickly relative to the first few. The only camper to get eliminated was DJ, and no one had to pick anyone. Bridgette especially was doing well. Now that Geoff wasn’t there to take the challenges for her, she was knocking them out of the park. Because of this, Chris let her decide who could go next.

Bridgette picked Trent, who couldn’t even start his challenge. Chris was disappointed that no one would be fighting Sasquatchanakwa, but the challenge had to go on, so he called Izzy up. She always made things interesting.

Chris continued picking campers by random order until everything on the first wheel had been landed on. The challenge wasn’t over, not by a longshot, and he had something special planned for the first switch. He had four backup wheels, but the campers didn’t know that. He called Courtney up and explained to her that, because there was nothing left, she would have to do ten seconds of everything. This was going to be awesome.

“What, Chris? That’s unfair!” Courtney argued, a hand on her hip, “there are at least twenty-five different challenges on that board! You can’t expect that of me! Those aren’t within the rules, and I’ve already done three. Am I supposed to do them again?”

“Oh, but I can expect that of you,” Chris grinned sadistically at her. Courtney was the most fun to rile up, and she was already delivering. “There’s no rule against it.”

Courtney narrowed her eyes at him, and she was dangerously closed to stamping her foot, “this is bullshit. No one else has had to do more than one at a time. Just make something else up.”

“Woah, easy on the language, Courtney,” Chris reprimanded, “kids are going to be watching this show. And, no, I don’t think I will. I’ve already decided that this is what you have to do.”

“And if I refuse to do it? Cite it as unfair? Because it is.” Courtney wouldn’t give in. This was ridiculous.

Chris’ grin grew larger, “then you’re out. I thought you knew the rules, Courtney. You’re always talking about them.”

Sighing, Courtney turned to the audience. She scanned the crowd and took in their expressions. They were anywhere between bored and sympathetic. Her eyes found Duncan’s, and he gave her an encouraging smile. She gave him a slight nod, letting him know she appreciated it.

Courtney turned back to Chris, “just so you know, I’m not happy about this. I still think it’s incredibly unfair, but I’ll do it. It’s not worth arguing with you about, but I’m sure if I had a little more time I could make you see it my way.”

“Doubtful, Courtney, but let’s move on and actually start,” Chris motioned for Chef to set up the first torture, which was skunks. This was one she had already done, so at least they were starting her out easy. “Okay, go on. And! You only get five seconds between each challenge, so I hope you’re ready.”

Courtney muttered a curse word under her breath. Of course, she would only get five seconds between each challenge. Why wouldn’t she? It was whatever Chris wanted. Taking a deep breath, she started her first torture. The ten seconds passed quickly, and she moved on to the next one.

As she went through the challenges, Courtney focused on her friends and boyfriend encouraging her and Chef setting up the next one before her. Knowing what was coming was a small comfort, and it was the only one she got. She finished the first ten tortures, and she smiled to herself. She was roughly a third of the way done! It was closing in on two minutes now, but it hadn’t seemed that long.

However, the physical effects of back to back to back challenges started taking its toll on her body, and she found it harder to hang on. No single torture was horrible, but her energy was draining and fast. The eighteenth challenge, which was balancing on a narrow stump while holding a bag of ice in each hand proved to be too much, and she had to step down.

“Fuck,” Courtney mumbled as she dropped the ice, “I suck. I was so close.” She folded her hands together in hopes of warming them. “This is bullshit. So unfair. Fuck.”

“Courtney! What happened?” Chris asked, pulling her out of herself, “you were doing _so_ well. I really thought you could pull this off. Man, I hate being wrong. Off you go to the Losers’ Hangout. Better luck next time.”

Courtney looked at the ground, refusing to acknowledge anyone. She had failed herself and those rooting for her. It wasn’t her fault, the challenge was ridiculously stacked against her, but it still stung. She just bobbed her head before dashing off the stage and towards the dining hall. At least no one there had seen that pathetic display.

The dining hall was different than Courtney had ever seen it. The tables and chairs had been moved out, forcing them to either stand or sit on the floor. A bored college-aged intern was sitting on the serving line, and she assumed she was their chaperone, which she didn’t think they needed. Trent was sitting against the left wall, and Geoff and DJ were near the right one.

Courtney joined her former teammates, sitting down next to DJ. Both him and Geoff were giving her questioning looks, likely wondering what had happened, but she just shook her head. It was the most asinine way to get eliminated, and she didn’t want to talk about it.

“I hate Chris. I hate this challenge,” Courtney hugged her knees and rested her head on her shoulder, “I hate being back on this stupid island where rules don’t mean anything.”

“Sorry,” DJ said, patting her on the shoulder, “want to talk about it?”

Courtney shook her head, “I don’t even want to think about it. I just want to… I just want to sit here. I’m so mad. I shouldn’t be here.”

Sharing a quick look with Geoff, DJ laughed, “we can tell. Still, I’m sorry about whatever happened. How’s everything else going over there?”

Courtney shrugged the best she could, “fine. Bridgette’s doing phenomenally, and Izzy is… I don’t know what Izzy is, but she loves it. Everyone else is doing decent. Some of the challenges are stupidly easy while others are almost impossible. As always, Chris shows no regard for the rules. Maybe Tyler or Heather is out next. Maybe Gwen. I don’t know.”

“I hope Bridgette wins, then.” DJ commented before moving on, “I guess this is the first time I’ve talked to you in a couple of days. I have some stuff for you.”

Lifting her head from her shoulder, Courtney sent him a questioning look, “what kind of stuff? Good or bad?”

DJ smiled, “game stuff. We have an… interesting offer, you and me. I’ll let you decided if it’s good or bad.”

“Well, what is it? Aren’t you going to tell me?” Courtney pressed, straightening herself out.

“I thought I would build it up some,” DJ laughed, “but yeah, I can tell you. Heather wants an alliance with you, me, her, and Lindsay. She wants you, me, and her in the final three.”

Courtney blinked. She blinked again. She looked at Geoff, who had likely tuned them out one DJ had said the words “game stuff.” She looked back at DJ, who was watching her expectantly. Then, she started laughing.

“What? No, she doesn’t!” Courtney said between giggles.

DJ nodded, “she does. She told me yesterday. She thinks the three of us would work well together, and that she’s interested in trying it out. I expect she’s going to try to get you alone at some point today to tell you about it, but I wanted to tell you first. I already told her you wouldn’t want to.”

Courtney continued to laugh, “but why? I’ve never given her any indication that I like her! In fact, I’ve been quite clear that I don’t.”

“Apparently, you and I are the only two bass worth anything, and she thinks we have great potential as a team. She respects us or something,” DJ chuckled, shaking his head, “I don’t know. I don’t know why she thinks that, but she’s determined to make it happen.”

“I’m more determined,” Courtney said, finally done laughing, “there is no way I will ever willingly work with her in this game. Especially not without Bridgette or Duncan.”

“Yeah, I thought that’s what you’d say, and I told her that when she brought it up,” DJ said, “she didn’t seem to think it was that big of a deal.” He leaned towards her and let out a soft chuckle before asking, “so, do you think we should go for it?”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “yeah, let’s ditch all our friends in favor of a terrible person. Great idea. That’s how we’ll get further in the game, not sticking together.”

DJ laughed, holding his hands out in surrender, “you’re not holding any punches. But I think we should think about it.”

“Why?” Courtney rewrapped her arms around her legs, “we already have an alliance. I don’t want to change it.”

“We wouldn’t have to change it, Court. Heather’s already said as much,” DJ said, “I just think we should keep our options open. She could help us out in the future, and it really wouldn’t hurt anything now. We can still work with Duncan and Bridgette. It’s just a little extra insurance.”

Courtney considered this. DJ wasn’t wrong, but the thought of willingly working with Heather made her skin crawl. She’d sooner roll over and die. “You’re right, but I don’t like it. It’s not even something I want to think about right now. Do you actually want to work with her?”

“I mean, not really,” DJ shrugged, “it’s just easy. I told her I wasn’t considering it and that you wouldn’t either, but it’s something to think about. We have the same goal. Why not use her vote?”

“She’ll probably try to hold it over us, and that’s not something I want to deal with right now, for one,” Courtney said, “she can vote for whoever she wants to, but I’m not going to seek her out for her vote. I’m not asking her to do anything for me.”

“I don’t think she will,” DJ disagreed, “we talked for a while yesterday, and I think all she wants is for the three of us to vote together sometimes. Please, just hear her out when she comes to you, okay? Pretend to think it over.”

Nodding, Courtney sighed, “I’ll let her talk, but that’s it. Let’s move on now. I don’t want to talk about this anymore until I get a chance to either hear what she actually has to say or talk about it with Duncan.”

DJ smiled, “I’m good with that.” He nudged Geoff in the shoulder, getting his attention. “hey, man, we’re done with the game talk. You wanna join us?”

“Finally,” Geoff joked, scooting closer to his friends to form a half-circle, “thought I was gonna hafta pretend to listen to that until the challenge was over. Or at least ‘til Bridge got here. What’s going on?”

“Nothing’s going on,” Courtney started as the dining hall door opened again. She paused to see who it was, but it was just Gwen, so she continued. “DJ was telling me about… some stuff. And now we’re going to talk about something different. How was camp?”

DJ grimaced, “I actually told Geoff yesterday. He knows. Sorry,” he apologized while Geoff motioned over to Trent and Gwen, who were sitting close, “you see that? I did that. Just call me Match-Maker Geoff.”

Though she knew she would regret it, Courtney had to ask, “what are you talking about? Also, I’m not going to call you that.”

Geoff got up on his knees and fell towards Courtney, grabbing her shoulder, “I’m talkin’ about true love! Did you know Gwen likes Trent? I think they’re together now! I helped do that!”

DJ struggled to keep it together while Courtney swatted his hands away. Geoff was oddly proud of how everything had happened yesterday and now today, and it was all he wanted to talk about. This was going to be a long and involved story with many tangents.

Over the next twelve minutes, Courtney learned all about Gwen and Trent, Gwen and Leshawna, and how Geoff “singlehandedly” stopped all the arguing yesterday. She also learned about how Geoff was certain that his and Bridgette’s time was soon and about the picture he had drawn for her. Though she wanted to, she couldn’t tell him about what had transpired on the reward. That was up to Bridgette. She just hoped it would be soon.

Thankfully, before it got too clear that something was off, the door opened, and Duncan came in. Courtney smiled at him, waving him over.

Duncan came and sat down next to Courtney, close enough that their sides were touching. Stretching his legs out in front of him, he gave DJ and Geoff a quick wave before wrapping his arm around her. “You okay, babe? Your elimination was bullshit.”

“I’m fine. As long as I don’t think about it,” Courtney sighed, slowly blowing out, “can I sit on your lap? I’m tired of sitting on the floor.”

“Yeah, Princess, give me a sec,” Duncan moved his legs into a crisscross position and straighten up before the arm around her shoulder dropped down to her hip, “come here.” He helped her onto his lap and wrapped an arm across her stomach. She bent her knees so that her ankles brushed against his calves, shifting until she was comfortable.

“Thanks,” Courtney whispered, giving him a soft smile.

Duncan pressed his free hand onto her shoulder, rubbing it, “no problem. Sure you’re okay?” Courtney nodded, so he took her word for it and addressed the whole group, “what are we talking about?”

Geoff, excited to tell his success story to another person, opened his mouth, but DJ beat him to it.

“Nothing, we’re not talking about anything,” DJ shot a glance at Geoff hoping to calm him down. The blond visibly deflated, and he only felt a little bad about it. “Court, did you want to tell him about Heather?”

“What about Heather?” Duncan asked as Courtney nodded.

Turning her head towards him, Courtney said, “Heather wants an alliance with me, her, and DJ. He told me about it a little ago. Apparently, it’s something to consider.”

“But you already have an alliance with me, babe,” Duncan feigned a hurt expression, “you can’t join another one without me, babe. I didn’t hear my name.”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “I’m not joining an alliance without you, _babe_. Heather hasn’t even talked to me about it yet, so I don’t know all the details. Even so, it’s a nonstarter. I’m not playing this game without you or Bridgette.”

Duncan’s hand on her shoulder moved down the front of her body, and he linked his arms together, “good, cos I wouldn’t let you. I need you by my side. I can’t even imagine you working with Heather. You two would eat each other alive. My money’s on you, by the way.”

“As it should be,” Courtney laughed before getting serious. They needed to have a conversation about this and the vote, and now was as good a time as any. Duncan and Courtney carried the bulk of the conversation, DJ answering questions about Heather’s proposal as needed. Geoff tuned them out completely.

This continued until the door opened again, Tyler coming in. DJ and Geoff excused themselves to go talk to him in hopes of rekindling their friendship with him. They all voted him out, and there was a chance he was upset about it.

Ten more minutes passed before the next person came in. Heather. As with everyone who came before her, the campers stopped what they were doing and watched what she would do. Quickly scanning the crowd, she found her intended target and stalked over to her.

“Courtney, hey! Sorry about how you got eliminated. Even I’ll admit that it wasn’t fair,” Heather squatted down behind Duncan, “I was wondering if I could talk to you? Alone?”

Courtney, who was no longer sitting on Duncan’s lap but kneeling between his knees, looked over his shoulder and nodded, “I suppose that would be okay. We can just stay here. Babe, you mind?”

Shaking his head, Duncan stood up, but not without pressing a kiss to her cheek, “find me after?” Courtney nodded, and he left to join DJ, Geoff, and Tyler. Once they were alone, she turned around, sitting down next to Heather.

“You two are cute, I guess,” Heather started, deciding against fake niceties. She wouldn’t drag this out. “I assume you already know why I’m here?”

“DJ told me,” Courtney confirmed.

Heather smiled, “great. Any questions?”

Courtney looked at her carefully, her eyes squinting, “why?”

Why? Wasn’t it obvious? “Because you and I are the best ones at this game. Because, by the looks of it, DJ is a great number two and because Lindsay mostly does whatever I tell her, and she really likes you. Because I want to win, and I assume you want to win, too. Because, despite what you think, we actually have a lot in common. We’d both do whatever it takes to win. I think we’d be great friends if you gave it a chance. What do you say?”

“Heather, no,” Courtney sighed, looking in front of her, “I can’t, and, even if I could, I don’t want to. You know I don’t like you, and I already have other relationships I’m invested in.”

“I think you’d like me if you let yourself, and, yes, I know. Blonde one and juvie and even other blond one are safe for now. This isn’t an exclusive thing, at least not yet,” Heather mirrored Courtney’s position, “I just want to see how this would work. I have a good feeling about us. Let me in today’s vote, that’s all I’m asking.”

Courtney sighed again, closing her eyes, “I’ll think about it. We haven’t decided who exactly we’re going for, but I might let you know once we do. And let me assure you: you and I will never be friends. I’m better than that.”

“You’re good at this game, Courtney. You know better than to shut down potential allies,” Heather turned towards her, “and, pretty soon, others are going to realize you’re good at this game. You never know when you’ll need some extra help, and I’m offering to be that for you. Don’t burn this bridge. You don’t want me as your enemy.”

“I’m sure I don’t,” Courtney opened her eyes and faced Heather, “I understand where you’re coming from, but it’s not going to happen. I’m sorry.”

Heather shook her head, her expression neutral, “don’t be. This isn’t over. I respect you as a game player and even as a person, so I’ll give you some time. I’m usually right about stuff like this. Just think about it. Let me know the vote, and I’ll vote with you. We’d make a good pair.”

Courtney nodded, “okay. I’ll think it over, but that’s all. Just to end this conversation.”

Holding out her hand for a handshake, Heather broke out into the closest thing to a genuine smile Courtney had ever seen on her, “Great! I really hope you give this some actual consideration. You won’t regret it.”

“I’m almost certain I would,” Courtney muttered, but she still took the handshake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there's the first half of No Pain, No Game. I decided to bring Tyler back instead of Eva because I have bigger plans for Eva if I ever make it to World Tour. Since Eva can't be eliminated who do you think will be? Who do you think will win immunity? There are still four campers left!
> 
> As always, if you enjoyed it please leave a kudos or a comment! I always appreciate them, and I'm thankful to everyone who has in the past. The next chapter should be out in two weeks, and it will be the second half of No Pain, No Game. I haven't yet started on Search and Do Not Destroy. And now, to plug my tumblr. Follow me at @i-wish-i-was-kidding. I post about my fic, total drama in general, and a few other things. I'd love it if you'd stop by!


	15. Close

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'll remember, we're nearing the end of the challenge. Bridgette, Izzy, Lindsay, and Leshawna are still in it, and it's anyone's game! Heather wants an alliance with Courtney, and what's going on with Geoff and Bridgette? Enjoy!

Chris was starting to get a little impatient. The challenge had just passed the two-hour mark, and there were still four campers left. None of the girls looked like they were giving up any time soon.

Leshawna handled everything with a determinedness the other three lacked, quiet and completely in the zone. Izzy enjoyed every second of the torture, cheering whenever it was her turn. Lindsay squirmed and complained, but still she kept going. Bridgette looked absolutely bored as she did her tortures, almost as if this was just another day. There had to be something he could do to hurry this along.

“Lindsay, you’re up again!” Chris called, his voice tired, “and, since we’ve gone through three different wheels, I’m changing things up. The challenges are no longer by chance, but I’m picking something special for each of you.”

“Coming!” Lindsay ran to the center of the stage and smiled at her host, “what do I have to do?”

Chris smirked, and, suddenly she wasn’t so happy, “Wawanakwa Hair Salon! How close will you let Chef get to your head with a pair of scissors? If you manage to make it the whole ten seconds, you win this challenge and get a cool new do!”

“My hair?” Lindsay asked, subconsciously touching it, “you want to cut off my hair? But I need it! I don’t want to get a haircut, especially not from Chef. He’s not a trained professional. He’ll cut off too much! And it’ll be uneven! I don’t want a haircut. I like my hair how it is. I don’t want it to look bad. I don’t want to be ugly.”

“Yes, yes, it’s quite shocking, I know. So, are we doing this?”

Lindsay looked at the others. Bridgette and Leshawna were both sending her sympathetic looks. Izzy was picking her split ends. She really didn’t want to do this, and she didn’t think the trailer was quite worth a bad haircut. Worse, she could hear Chef snipping the scissors behind her, ready to make her ugly.

Turning back, Lindsay shook her head, “no. I can’t have a bad haircut, I just can’t. I’ll go to the dining hall now.”

Chris nodded, “you hate to see it. Anyway! The show must go on! Izzy, it’s your turn!” Izzy quickly took Lindsay’s spot. Once she was there, Chris continued, “Your challenge is… the electric eel shock!”

Despite that being completely dangerous, Izzy cheered, “bring it on! I’ve always wanted to be shocked by electric eels! And you thought this would make me quit.”

Chris bit back a smile. This wasn’t Izzy’s real challenge, not by a long shot. “I hope for your sake you’re right. Chef, let’s go!” Chef sighed and grabbed the eels, shocking Izzy with them. Unsurprisingly, she easily withstood it.

“That was great!” Izzy laughed, her eyes wide, “I told you I could do it! Ha, ha, sucker! You thought you had me, but you didn’t.”

“But I do,” Chris smiled, and everyone’s eyes shot to him. What? “Since you’ve been so enthusiastic about everything, I thought I’d reward you with letting you pick the next victim. You can pick Bridgette or Leshawna. Or… if you wanted to… you can even pick yourself.”

Shit. Izzy didn’t seem to realize the magnitude of this, but Bridgette and Leshawna did. She was screwed no matter which way she went. If she picked one of them, she’d likely be out. If she picked herself, she’d definitely be out, whether she won or lost.

“I can pick myself?” Izzy asked, and Chris nodded. This was actually happening. “Okay, then I pick myself! I wanna go again!”

“I hoped you’d pick yourself. Your next torture or, in your case, pleasure, is a poison-ivy spa treatment! You know the drill: ten seconds of poison-ivy goodness, and then it’s over!”

“Sounds fun!” Izzy’s voice was full of sincerity, “is it just on my arms or my legs or both or on my face or what?”

Letting out a sound of disbelief Chris shrugged, “I don’t know! Chef was just going to put it on you. Arms and legs, I guess. As much as I’d love to do the face, I don’t think the producers would be very happy with that. Sorry, Izzy.”

Izzy nodded as if she understood, “okay. Let’s do this.” Then, Chef wrapped the poison-ivy around her arms and legs, signifying her elimination. They’d still wait and see, though. This was awesome! Sure enough, she passed.

“Nice! Way to go, Izzy!” Chris mocked, which Izzy didn’t pick up on, “proud of you. Sadly, though, you’re out.”

“What?” Izzy stood up from the table, “why am I out? I did the challenge! And I want to do more!”

Chris grimaced, shaking his head, “if your victim completes their challenge, you’re out. Your victim was you, and you completed your challenge. You’re out!”

Frowning, Izzy stuck her tongue out at him, “that’s no fun! There are still so many fun challenges for me to do! I’m sad. I should have resisted the urge to pick myself.” She shook her head. “I can never say no to temptation. I thought maybe you were tricking me, but it was so shiny! Ah, well, next time.”

“Quit your rambling and get out of here!” Chris ordered, “and wash your arms and legs off before going to the dining hall. I don’t need you spreading poison-ivy. Capisce?” Izzy nodded and left, so he turned back to the final two campers. The end was in sight!

“We’re down to the wire! Who’s it going to be: Leshawna or Bridgette? Both of you have made an outstanding performance today, but it must come to the end. Here’s the rules: first one to fail a challenge, loses! We keep going until someone loses, but it’s not going to be easy! For the sake of fairness, I have a fifth wheel for us. If you somehow finish the wheel, then we compete head to head! Who’s ready?”

Neither girl showed any emotion except boredom. Where was the hype? Chris sighed, “Bridgette, you’re up first.”

The end was not in sight. What Chris thought was going to take maybe six minutes took close to an hour, and the eliminated campers were starting to develop cabin fever.

It had been three hours and counting since the challenge had started, and tensions were at an all-time high. They were trapped, unable to do anything except sit and wait for an end that didn’t seem to be coming.

“I need out of here now. I want to be alone with you and do things I can’t with everyone watching,” Duncan murmured into Courtney’s ear. They were standing now, and his hand rested on her hip.

Courtney sighed, grabbing his arm and squeezing it, “baby, I know. This is shitty, but it’s almost over. Just hold on a little longer.”

Duncan let out a strained groan, “you can’t know that. It’s already been for-fucking-ever. I can’t handle it anymore.”

“You can handle it,” Courtney shifted closer to him and let the side of her breast graze his arm. It was the easiest sign of comfort she could give him. His hand just gripped her hip tighter, and she knew it helped. “I know you can. It’s almost over.”

“Like Hell it’s almost over,” Duncan’s free hand reached for her shoulder. His forearm pressed against her upper arm as he moved closer. “It’s been an hour since Izzy got here. This isn’t ending any time soon.”

Courtney sighed again, “please, Duncan, just pretend. We’re almost in the clear. We have to be. Look, one of them is going to get tired soon. They’ve been doing this all morning. It’s only logical.”

“Logic doesn’t exist on this damn island. You know that.”

“Yes, but I’m choosing to believe it does. You’re not the only one who wants out of here, trust me. I’m upset we’re stuck here, too,” Courtney’s thumb stroked his arm, “But, honey, you have to relax a little and maybe take a step back. We’re about a centimeter away from turning into Lindsay and Tyler.”

“You’re the one who decided to let me cop a feel. Babe, I know you did that on purpose,” Duncan didn’t move away from her, but he did look over his shoulder to the mentioned couple. They obviously didn’t care how many people were around because, as far as he could tell, Tyler’s tongue was down Lindsay’s throat. He quickly turned back to his girlfriend. “And I appreciate you so much for it. I like being close to you.”

Still stroking his arm, Courtney quietly laughed, “you caught me. Okay. Be close all you want.”

Then, the most marvelous thing happened. The door started to open. Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare. Who was it? Was it over? What was going on? Those questions were answered when Chris walked in.

“Alright campers, apparently Leshawna and Bridgette want this challenge to last all day, which is very inconsiderate of them, don’t you think?” The campers nodded, and Chris continued “I don’t want that, so I’m forcing them to compete head to head to finally end this thing. Come with me to the beach, and then hopefully we can all get on with our day. Should’ve just let Izzy win.”

Chris turned and walked out of the dining hall, and the campers wasted no time following after. They were still stuck, but at least they wouldn’t have to be in that building anymore.

Grabbing Duncan’s hand off her hip, Courtney laced their fingers together, “see, I told you. It’s almost over.”

Duncan rolled his eyes but stepped closer to her, “yeah, I should’ve listened to you, Court. You were right.”

“Honestly? It was just a lucky guess, but it turned great,” Courtney bumped her shoulder against his arm, “you think we can get away with just leaving now? I don’t know if we’re allowed to, but the cabin’s right there.”

Looking around, Duncan nodded. No one was paying them any attention, and Chris never said they couldn’t. “Come on,” he whispered, pulling her away from the group. They didn’t make it two steps before they were stopped by Chris, who, although he was in front of them, apparently knew what they were planning.

“By the way, we all have to watch this final showdown, so don’t try to sneak off,” Chris yelled over his shoulder, “if I have to be there, you have to be there. You’ll have plenty of time to do whatever you want later.”

“How the fuck were we caught?” Duncan groaned as Courtney brought them back to the group. While he had no problem ignoring Chris’ announcement, she did. “I just wanna be alone with you.”

Courtney gave him a knowing smile and squeezed his hand, “yeah. Soon.”

Duncan sighed and took another step closer. They were so close to being done. The cabin was right there. This sucked. Courtney just laughed at his obvious frustration, and he focused on the sound as they walked the rest of the way to the beach.

When they made it, Courtney sat down in the sand and pulled Duncan next to her. The rest of their castmates scattered around the beach, and Chris stood on the dock. The challenge had already been set up, and Bridgette and Leshawna stood at the edge of the dock in their swimsuits. There was a log floating in the water.

“So, the final challenge of the morning,” Chris said, “Bridgette and Leshawna, you’ll be competing in the log roll. Whoever can balance on this log the longest wins! Are we ready?”

Both Leshawna and Bridgette nodded, so Chef helped them onto the log. Once they were situated, Chris said “go,” and Chef let go of their hands. As the log started rolling, the girls started moving their feet. The crowd watched with mild excitement and cheered for who they wanted to win.

It wasn’t a long match. While they had both started strong, Bridgette was soon struggling. Despite being a surfer, she found it difficult to balance on the log. The water didn’t help. She’d never been graceful, and now wasn’t any different. Besides, Leshawna was more focused than her and wanted the trailer more. Seven seconds after it started, Bridgette jumped into the lake.

Chef reached out to grab Leshawna and pulled her up onto the dock. Chris grabbed her hand and raised it in the air, “Leshawna wins! Bridgette is out!”

Leshawna smiled widely at her castmates, “that’s how I roll! Yeah! Sorry, Bridgette. I needed that trailer.”

“Yes, I’m sure you did,” Chris said before moving on, “anyway, lunch is in half an hour. I’ll see you tonight at eight for the marshmallow ceremony where you’ll be voting someone else out! Leshawna’s immune, but anyone else is fair game! Go on! Enjoy your day.”

“It’s over,” Courtney smiled, nudging Duncan on the shoulder.

Duncan returned her smile and stood up, “I know.” He offered her a hand. “Get up. We can go now.”

Courtney took his hand, and he helped her up. She didn’t let go of it. “Okay. I need to talk to Bridgette first, though. Tell her we aren’t going to make it to lunch, probably?” Duncan nodded, so she did too. “Tell her we aren’t going to make it to lunch, then. And she needs to talk to Geoff.”

Duncan dropped her hand, “go, then. I’ll wait here.”

“Be right back,” Courtney leaned up and kissed him on the cheek before running over to Bridgette, who was talking to Geoff and DJ. She grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from the guys.

“Bridgette, though you didn’t win, I wanted to say great job. You hung in there for a long time.”

Bridgette blushed, “thanks. You did a great, too. You lasted a lot longer than I would have with your final challenge. That was super unfair. Did you also want to tell me you aren’t coming to lunch? And that Duncan won’t be there either?”

Rolling her eyes, Courtney nodded, “and you need to talk to Geoff. He thinks it’s happening for you two. He’s excited. You need to talk to him.”

“What am I supposed to tell him, though?” Bridgette asked, grabbing Courtney’s other hand, “I don’t want to break his heart or anything. I don’t know how to tell him this.”

“Yes, you do,” Courtney squeezed Bridgette’s hands before dropping them, “we’ve talked about this. Speak from your heart, like you always do. And, while I doubt you’re actually going to break his heart, you’ll break it more if you jerk him around. I really have to go now, but I believe in you.”

 “Are you sure you have to go?” Bridgette sounded panicked as she grabbed Courtney’s wrist.

Courtney looked at Duncan before turning back to Bridgette, “I’m sure. It’s kind of been a long few hours. Bridge, just tell him the truth. It’s not that hard. You don’t need me. I wouldn’t help anything.”

Letting go of Courtney’s wrist, Bridgette nodded, “I don’t need you. You wouldn’t help anything. It’s not that hard. Okay. I can do this. Go before I change my mind.”

“That’s the spirit! I’m leaving now. You’ve got it,” Courtney assured, flashing her a smile before going back to Duncan. She grabbed his hand and started walking towards the cabin. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Duncan walked with her, “now we shouldn’t have any interruptions.”

Courtney laughed, “hopefully. Thanks for waiting. I… I like you.”

Duncan smiled but didn’t reply. He just dropped her hand and wrapped his arm around her instead, tugging her to his side. They walked the rest of the way in a comfortable silence.

After kicking off their shoes by the door, Duncan walked straight to the bed and sat down at the edge of it. Courtney turned on the light before sitting next to him. They were quiet as they took a moment to finally breathe. Then, not wanting to wait any longer, Duncan leaned over and kissed her.

The kiss was soft, one of his hands slowly moving up her thigh and the other gripping her shoulder. Both of her hands rested on his chest. She opened her mouth for him, and he slipped his tongue inside. Without breaking the kiss, Duncan pushed Courtney onto her back and lowered himself onto her. He needed to be closer to her.

“Mmm, Duncan,” Courtney moaned into the kiss. Her hands traveled down his stomach until she reached the hem of his shirt. She grabbed it and pushed it up. “Off.”

Duncan laughed, rolling off her and sitting up, “whatever you want.” He smiled at her before taking off both of his shirts at once and carelessly throwing them onto the floor. As he did that, Courtney crawled all the way onto the bed and sat against the wall. He looked back at her, “you too, Court.”

Leaning forward and removing her top sweater, Courtney nodded. That came easy, but she would have to unbutton her white blouse completely. She started it, but she didn’t want to finish, “help me with the buttons, please.”

“Happily,” Duncan murmured, reaching forward. His forehead rested on hers as he undid the buttons, and, once they were all undone, together they got the blouse off completely. “There you go, Princess.”

“Thank you. I hate having to button and unbutton that every day,” Courtney tilted her head up and pecked him on the lips. “Lie down.”

“Okay, babe,” Duncan did as she asked, laying on his side. He propped himself up on his elbow.

Courtney smiled and slid down next to him. She placed her hand on his hip and scooted closer until their lower halves were pressed against each other’s. His free hand played with her hair as she hitched a leg over his. “I like this. Us. I like being close to you. I like you. I’m going to kiss you again.”

Dropping his head to the pillow, Duncan nodded. This wasn’t the furthest they’d gone, but it felt the most intimate, and he liked the feeling. Courtney’s eyes fluttered closed, and she pressed her lips against his. Her tongue swept across his teeth and into his mouth before finding his newly returned tongue ring. She focused all her attention there, having missed the jewelry.

As the kiss progressed, Courtney couldn’t help but marvel about how right this felt. They were on equal footing, not having to worry about who was on top and who was on bottom. They could both lead. He treated her with so much care, listening to her and showing his appreciation the best way he knew how, and, in the moment, she loved him for it. For the whole morning. She didn’t try to get the thought out of her head like she usually would, but she wouldn’t say it. She couldn’t.

She had never seriously told anyone she loved them before, and no one had ever said it to her, either. It wasn’t time yet. It had almost slipped out earlier, but she had stopped herself before it could. It was still too soon, and she didn’t love him all the time. Only in small moments that were growing longer with less time between.

Grabbing Duncan’s hand in her hair, Courtney guided it to her bra clasp. He would certainly find this better than those words. Letting out a low moan, his other arm forced its way under her waist to help, and he soon had it undone. He pushed the straps down her shoulders, and she helped by taking her arms out. He tossed it over the side of the bed before moving a hand to her breast.

Meanwhile, Bridgette was about to break a heart. Geoff had been so excited when she pulled him to the side and told him they needed to talk. No doubt he thought she wanted to make things official between them.

That was confirmed as Bridgette held Geoff’s drawing for her in her hands. It was poorly drawn but possessed all of his charm, and she couldn’t pull her eyes away from it. She didn’t want to look at it, but the alternative was looking at him, and she definitely couldn’t do that right now.

“See, it’s you ’n me sittin’ on the dock holding hands cos we like each other ’n stuff,” Geoff said, and she could hear the smile in his voice. This was going to hurt. “And I wrote a lil’ something on the back for you! Turn it over.”

Bridgette nodded and did what he asked. _Bridge + Geoff = Forever_. Shit. She looked up from the paper, heartbreak evident on her face. He didn’t notice.

“I know it’s a lil’ cheesy, but who doesn’t like cheese?” Geoff asked before panicking slightly, “wait. Do you like cheese? Are you allowed to eat that? Sorry if you aren’t.”

“No, I can eat cheese. I’m vegetarian, not vegan,” Bridgette wished she could laugh at the cluelessness she once found endearing. She wished she could just force herself to like him again.

Geoff smiled, “okay, good. I dunno a lot of things, but I know I like you. I’ve been tryin’ to give you time to make a move, and I’m still doing that, I just wanted to make somethin’ for you. I dunno, remind you of me. It’s hard cos everyone is getting together, but I’d wait forever for you.”

Closing her eyes, Bridgette slowly breathed out, “you shouldn’t. You shouldn’t wait forever for me. Geoff, I don’t think this is going to work out.”

“What?” Geoff asked, and Bridgette opened her eyes to look at him. She owed him that. His expression was confused mixed with a sliver of hurt. “Bridge, why not? Did I do somethin’? Is it the drawing?”

“No, Geoff, it’s not the drawing. You didn’t do anything. It’s me,” Bridgette grabbed his hand and squeezed it, “you’re a really great guy, and I love being your friend, but I don’t want anything more than that. I wish I did.”

“What happened?” Geoff pulled his hand from hers and turned away, “I thought… I thought you liked me.”

Bridgette sighed, “I thought I did too, Geoff. I really wish I did. I just… I don’t. It’s not about anything you did, because you didn’t. It’s about my feelings.”

Geoff sniffed and brought a hand to the front of his face, wiping it down. Was he crying? No. Bridgette didn’t want that. “When did you… you realize that, uhm… when did you realize that you did… didn’t like me? Were you… was it recently or, uh, or for a long time?”

“Recently, oh Geoff, recently, I promise. On the reward, actually,” Bridgette hopped out of her seat and walked around to his front. He needed to know she didn’t lead him on. “I promise. I told you a while ago that our time was coming, and I really thought it was. This is so recent. I still really like you as a friend, and I still really want to be your friend, if you’ll let me.”

Looking at her through his tears, Geoff nodded, “okay. I can, uh… I can respect that. We are really good friends. This just sucks, y’know? It feels like a breakup even though we weren’t together or anything.”

Bridgette nodded, “it does suck. Sorry. I know this doesn’t help, but I really want to like you. You’re a great guy.”

“If I’m so great then why don’t you like me?” Geoff spit before he could stop himself. He quickly realized his mistake, but the damage was already done.

“Geoff!” Bridgette gasped, taking a step back and covering herself with her arms. Maybe she deserved that, but she didn’t think she did, and it hurt. He was one of her best friends, and if he didn’t want that anymore? She didn’t think she could handle that.

“Wait, that’s not fair,” Geoff reached out to grab her, but fell short. Maybe that wasn’t the right move. “Bridge, I’m sorry for sayin’ that. You’re great, too. Being friends is nice. I just… can I have some time?”

Bridgette slowly stood up straight, “oh, Geoff, yes. You can have as much time as you need. I’m really sorry. Do you want your drawing back?”

Geoff shook his head, “no. You can keep it. Made it for you. It can just be ‘Bridge plus Geoff equals Friends Forever.’ Cos we will be, just not right now. Is that okay?”

“That’s so okay. I get it. I wouldn’t want to be my friend right now either,” Bridgette folded up the paper and stuck it in her hoodie pocket, “I’ll leave you here. I’m going to skip out on lunch. I had a nice, big breakfast this morning on reward, but DJ will be there. Duncan and Courtney won’t, though, they’re, uhm… they’re busy.”

Though he was still crying, Geoff laughed, “they’re always busy. Bye.”

Bridgette held up a hand in lieu of a wave, “bye.” Then, she left. Once she was gone, Geoff collapsed into a seat, his head falling onto the table. This sucked big time.

Twenty minutes later, everyone who had made it was finishing up lunch. The tables had been moved back in, and things finally started to feel like normal again. Gwen, Trent, and Leshawna sat at the far end of the old gophers’ table and discussed their strategy.

“And you really think this will work?” Gwen asked, looking between Trent and Leshawna, “you think we can actually convince everyone to vote with us?”

“I mean, I hope so,” Trent said, “I think it’s the only option we really have at this point. To try to get as many people on board with voting Courtney out as possible. As long as it doesn’t get back to her or Duncan or Bridgette. I don’t know what else we can do.”

Gwen nodded, resting her head on a hand, “no, you’re right. It’s just a lot of work. And I don’t really want to be stuck with Izzy. That conversation is going to be exhausting.”

Leshawna raised her eyebrows at the goth, “would you rather have Heather? Cos I’ll trade.” Gwen sighed and shook her head. “That’s what I thought. Sometimes we gotta do things we don’t wanna do. I don’t see how it’s fair that you,” she pointed her thumb at Trent, “get the guys, and we get Izzy and Heather, but that’s how it has to be.”

Trent let out an affronted noise, “I thought we agreed that they would respond better to a guy solidarity thing! And you’re the only one Heather even halfway respects! But I am sorry you got stuck with Izzy, Gwen.”

Laughing, Leshawna shook her head, “boy, I’m not mad. You two always gotta take everything so seriously. Obviously, I’m the only one who has any hopes of makin’ Heather see reason. And that’s a big hope. We all know Heather has her own agenda and doesn’t budge.”

“Well then, let’s hope her agenda matches our agenda today,” Trent said, “I’m mostly scared about the guys. They might not go for a guys’ alliance. Tyler maybe because she voted him out, but Geoff and DJ are both close with Courtney. Izzy and Heather are actually the easy ones.”

“And ain’t that a scary thought,” Leshawna muttered.

“What if it doesn’t work?” Gwen said suddenly, sitting up straight, “what if we can’t get the votes to get Courtney out? What happens then?” She sounded scared, causing Trent and Leshawna to share a look.

It was a valid fear, Courtney had a lot of allies, but they couldn’t think like that. At least not until after they tried talking with the others. They needed to have hope. Hope that the guys would see her as the threat she was. Hope that Heather would want to break up the bass. Hope that Izzy would decide to listen to them. Hope that things would go their way.

“Then we hope that whoever Courtney targets isn’t one of us,” Trent sighed, grabbing Gwen’s hand, “we trust that nothing is going to go wrong. And, if it does, we move on. I’m scared too, Gwen, but it’s going to be okay.”

“I’m not scared,” Gwen snatched her hand away and crossed her arms over her chest, looking the other way, “I never said that I was scared. It sucks that you are, but I’m not.”

Trent held his hands up in defense, “okay, you’re not scared. Sorry. I thought I would try to reassure you, but I guess you don’t need that.”

Gwen turned back to him, a fire that wasn’t quite necessary in her eyes, and opened her mouth to say something. Before she could, however, Leshawna spoke, “you two need to calm down. Y’all are making me stressed, and I do not deserve to be stressed right now. I have immunity and a kickass trailer. Lunch is over anyways, maybe we stop talking about it and do it.”

“Sounds good to me,” Gwen huffed, not ceasing glaring at Trent, “I needed someone saner to talk to.”

No one responded to that, instead choosing to separately throw away their trash and gather their mark. Three minutes later, everyone was all set. The guys ended up in their cabin.

“You’re probably wondering why I wanted to talk to all of you,” Trent stood awkwardly at the front of the cabin, his eyes raking his cabinmates. Tyler and DJ both looked curious, but Geoff was lying face down in his bed with his cowboy hat covering his head. “Uhm, is he okay?”

“He’s fine,” DJ sighed, patting Geoff on the shoulder, “he’s going through some stuff right now, but he’ll be fine. You were going to tell us why you wanted to talk to us?”

Trent nodded, “yeah! Sorry, he just looks… sad. Anyways, I was thinking we could maybe do an all guys alliance? Get rid of some of the girls? There are only five of us and seven of them. They could pick us off if they wanted. We should be proactive.” He paused, waiting for their reaction.

Tyler looked at DJ, then Geoff (who still hadn’t moved), then Trent, then back at DJ, who he shared a confused look with. An all guys’ alliance? That didn’t seem right. “But this isn’t all the guys.”

Trent forced a laugh as he nodded, “yeah, I know, but it’s really important that it’s just us. I’m not trying to leave Duncan out, but I don’t think he’d be interested. He’s not going to be very happy about the vote.”

Looking down at his lap, Tyler tried to work it out. It almost sounded like…

“You want to vote Courtney out,” DJ said, his voice neutral, “that’s why Duncan isn’t here.”

Trent shrugged with his hands, “yeah. I just thought I would throw that out there. She’s the best in the game and in the best position, and none of us have a shot as long as she’s here. Her relationships are scary strong. Nothing’s breaking up her and Duncan or her and Bridgette.”

It was silent for a full minute, outside of some muffled wailing at the mention of Bridgette’s name. Trent didn’t know how that boded for him. What were the chances they were finding the right words to praise him for his awesome suggestion?

DJ broke the silence, “you make several good points… but I think… man, I don’t know. I kinda have a good thing going right now, and it includes Courtney. I don’t really want to mess that up.”

“No, man, I get that,” Trent said, wishing he could take it all back. This had been a bad idea. What was he thinking? DJ and Geoff were never going to turn on Courtney. And, even if they would, they definitely wouldn’t turn on Duncan. “She’s your friend, but this game might be more important than friendship.”

“I don’t know about that…” DJ furrowed his brows, “friendship is pretty important, and I can’t really justify valuing money over that, especially not at this point. What you said was right, but I’m probably not going to vote with you. I don’t want to speak for Geoff, but I think he’s with me.”

Geoff just groaned, and no one knew if it was an agreement or a disagreement. They ignored it.

Trent nodded, “yeah, sure. That’s cool. Just thought I’d see what people were thinking.” He took a deep breath and turned to Tyler. “What about you, man?”

“I don’t know, dude. I kinda wanted to vote with my Lindsay tonight, and I don’t know if she’d be into that,” Tyler rubbed the back of his neck, “maybe if you had the majority, but I don’t really want to make any waves tonight. I just got back, and I want play it safe.”

Trent nodded again. This was a disaster. “Yep. Cool. Totally understand. I’d want to vote with my girlfriend, too.” He started backing towards the door. “I was just testing the waters. I’d, uh, I’d appreciate it if we kept everything in this room. Like I said, Courtney’s the biggest threat, and she could probably find a way to get me out for suggesting it.”

Tyler and DJ both agreed, though they lying. Everyone wanted this conversation to be over. Trent took them for their word, and got the hell out of there.

Once he was gone, Tyler turned to his cabinmates, “so, Lindsay’s probably going to wanna vote with Bridgette and Courtney, and they’re probably going to vote with you, so you have my vote. And we’re totally telling them Trent wants Courtney out, right?”

“Right,” DJ laughed, “we’re happy to have you with us, even if Geoff doesn’t seem it right now. I don’t know who we’re going to vote for, but someone will figure that out.”

On the other side of the wall, Duncan and Courtney were taking a nap together. It wasn’t planned, but both the challenge and their personal activities had proved tiring. After a while, Courtney had curled her body around Duncan’s and told him she wanted to sleep, and he hadn’t said no.

As everyone else ran around camp, they slept. As their alliance mates and Lindsay and Tyler shared all their intel, they slept. As Heather silently formed a plan to keep Courtney safe, they slept. As Gwen, Trent, and Leshawna tried to figure out a way to get her out, they slept. They slept until someone knocked on the door.

The knocking, which was ceaseless, woke Duncan up first. He’d always been a light sleeper. Opening his eyes, he winced at the brightness in the room. Why hadn’t they turned off the lights? Then, he debated waking Courtney up.

If the knocking hadn’t already woken her up, he didn’t think it would. It had been going on for around a minute, and she was still sound asleep. She had only stirred slightly and mumbled, “loud” into his neck. He would deal with this himself.

“Just a minute,” Duncan hissed, loud enough that he knew whoever it was heard him but not loud enough to be considered loud at all. Sure enough, the knocking stopped. Now, he just had to get out of bed.

Duncan laid on his back, and Courtney had him pinned down with an arm, a leg, and half her body. Her head was tucked into his neck. He grabbed the arm around him and slowly moved it to her side. Then, he scooted away until her leg was no longer around him before climbing over her. She whined at the removal of physical contact, and he sighed. He wished he was still in bed with her, but he had to get dressed.

They had stripped down to their undergarments before falling asleep, and he was still in just his boxers. Courtney, who thought it was weird to sleep without a top on, was wearing his skull shirt, and he didn’t like wearing the white shirt without it. It didn’t matter who it was. They could see him shirtless. He just tugged his shorts up and opened the door. It was Bridgette.

“What?” Duncan whispered, his voice harsh.

“I wanted to talk to Courtney,” Bridgette gave him a once over as he stepped onto the porch and closed the door, “is now a bad time or…?”

Duncan shrugged, “kinda. You woke me up. She’s still asleep.”

“Dammit, sorry. Don’t wake her up. It’s nothing, really. I just got some information from DJ, and it’s about her, so we wanted to tell her. But it can wait.”

“What kind of information?” Duncan asked, mostly because he was already up and it was about his girlfriend.

“Trent proposed an all guys’ alliance to DJ, Tyler, and Geoff,” Bridgette watched his face for a reaction, but he didn’t give one, “he really wants Courtney gone tonight. We wanted to know who we were voting off, and where our sixth and seventh vote were coming from. I know Lindsay’s one…”

This time Duncan did react. His face hardened, and there was an edge in his voice. “Fucker. Grab DJ and Geoff and go to the arts and crafts tent. She’ll be pissed if we don’t do this now. We’ll get there when we get there.”

Bridgette nodded, “do you want me to get Lindsay, too? Since she’ll probably vote with us?”

“Fuck if I care,” Duncan rolled his eyes, “sure, whatever. If it means we don’t have to talk about it for as long.”

Trying hard not to laugh, Bridgette just nodded before darting off. Duncan sighed and went back into the cabin. This killed their afternoon plans of doing nothing. He found Courtney awake and sitting up and sat down next to her.

“Why’d you leave?” Courtney asked, curling into his side.

“Bridgette came by. Said Trent wants to vote you out, and she wants to talk about it,” Duncan reluctantly pushed her away, “I told her we could all meet in the arts and crafts tent. Babe, I’m sad to say it, but I need my shirt back, and you should probably get dressed.”

Courtney glared, more annoyed than angry, and got out of bed, “that’s dumb that he wants to vote me out, and that he told people. I didn’t think he was unintelligent, but I guess he is.” After putting her bra on under his shirt, she took it off and tossed it to him. “Don’t put the undershirt on, please. I want to feel more of your skin, even if it’s just your arm.”

Duncan nodded, pulling the shirt on, and watched her get dressed. He didn’t like it nearly as much as watching her get undressed.

They finished getting ready and left for the arts and crafts tent. Courtney looped an arm through his and placed her other hand just above his chest. As they walked, they threw out a few possible names and plans.

Everyone, excluding Geoff, was already in the arts and crafts tent went they got there. DJ and Bridgette sat on one side of the table, and Lindsay and Tyler, both of whom Courtney was surprised to see, sat on the other. Duncan took a seat at the head of the table, and she settled onto his lap.

“I hear we need to vote someone out tonight,” Courtney greeted, “where’s Geoff?”

Bridgette winced, knowing his absence was her fault, but didn’t say anything. She would just sit there and try not to look too guilty. DJ took it, “he wasn’t feeling up to this right now. He’s still with us, I’ll just tell him later.”

Courtney’s eyes drifted to Bridgette and could tell by the way that she was consciously not looking at anyone that they had talked earlier. She couldn’t say anything about it now, so she just caught her friend’s eye and gave her a small smile.

“Okay. That’s fine. He never listens, so it doesn’t make much of a difference,” Courtney turned to Lindsay and Tyler, “and you two are here because…? Not that you aren’t welcome, I’m just a little confused.”

“Bridge invited me!” Lindsay clasped her hands together, “she said that you were talking about the vote and that I could come! Don’t worry, I’m totally voting with you. I’ve been waiting so long for this!”

“Yeah, and I’m voting with Lindsay,” Tyler added, “DJ said I could come.”

Courtney quickly ran the numbers in her head, making sure she hadn’t miscounted. “So that’s seven! Which is all we need. Great. Now we just need a name. Duncan and I thought, since he said my name first, that it would be easiest to go with Trent. Thoughts?”

Bridgette giggled, “that’s kind of our move, right? Voting people out when they suggest you?” She shot Tyler a playful grin. “Sorry, Tyler.”

“I’d be a little pissed if you guys didn’t want to vote him out, honestly,” Tyler joked, “but, and I know I’ve been gone for a while, why are we going for Trent and not Heather? Doesn’t everyone kind of hate her?”

It was a reasonable question, and that’s why Courtney wasn’t annoyed that he asked it, “Heather’s not winning this game, and she’s not a threat to us right now. We’ve been teasing Trent, Gwen, or Leshawna for a while. Leshawna’s the best of them, but she has immunity, so it has to be Gwen or Trent. I know Gwen doesn’t like me, which is whatever, but Trent’s a bit of a mystery. I don’t like that.”

Tyler accepted this information, “cool. You totally have my vote for him tonight.”

Courtney smiled at him, “thank you, Tyler, and thank you for not holding a grudge. You very easily could have, and it would have been within your rights. We’re all okay with this?”

Everyone nodded, so Courtney stood up, “alright, we’re voting Trent out tonight. Thanks, everyone, for coming.” She turned to her best friend, “Bridge, you want to chat?”

“Yes, please,” Bridgette said as Lindsay also got up from her seat, “me too! I wanna chat, too! Can I?”

“Yeah, Linds, you can come,” Courtney reached a hand behind her and hit Duncan’s shoulder, “give me a minute, then we’ll leave.”

The teens said their goodbyes to friends, boyfriends, and girlfriends and made afternoon and evening plans. No one was in any rush to leave, and, before anyone did, the door opened. Assuming it was just Geoff, who was the only one who knew where they were, no one turned to look.

“Great, there you all are,” the person said, and it wasn’t Geoff’s voice but Heather’s, “Courtney, DJ, Lindsay, I want to talk to you. Everyone else can go.” She walked over to the table, everyone’s eyes on her, and sat down. “I had to ask other blond one where you were. Other blond one! And he was all sad. It was depressing.”

“Heather, what are you doing here?” Courtney tried to keep her voice even.

Heather rolled her eyes, “listen much? I want to talk to you. And DJ and Lindsay and not anyone else. I assume you’re all caught up on the play to get you out?

Crossing her arms over her chest, Courtney returned her eyeroll, “yes, and it’s handled. There’s nothing left to talk about. If you’ll remember, we aren’t allies or friends nor do I want to be.”

“You’ve made that abundantly clear, yes, but I’m not taking no for an answer,” Heather looked around the room, narrowing her eyes, “okay, there’s, like, three more of you than I want in here right now. Blonde one, juvie, Tyler, what are you still doing here?”

While both DJ and Lindsay had sat down at the table again, and Bridgette tried to quietly slip out, Courtney wasn’t having it. “No. Stay. They don’t have to go anywhere.”

Heather sighed and rolled her eyes again. Why was she being so difficult? All she wanted was for Courtney’s best friend and boyfriend to leave and for Courtney to join an alliance with her without either of them. What was so wrong with that? She watched as Bridgette placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Court, it’s okay. I don’t mind going. I’ll be at the beach, okay? Just meet me after.”

“You don’t have to go just because _she_ told you to,” Courtney said, “you’re a big part of my game.”

Bridgette shook her head, “I’m going. All three of us are going. It’s okay.” Her hand fell from Courtney’s shoulder. “I’ll see you in a bit.” Then, without giving Courtney time to say anything, she grabbed Duncan and Tyler’s wrists and dragged them away with her.

Courtney took a moment to collect herself, forcing herself to smile, and turned around, “so, what could you possibly have to tell me that I don’t already know?”

“Sit down,” Heather gestured to the chair next to her. Courtney begrudgingly took it. “I said earlier that I wanted to vote with you, and I mean it. I know you’ve already picked a name, so all you have to do is tell me. I’ll write that name down, no questions asked, and I’ll even throw in a little something extra for you.”

“Trent, I guess,” Courtney muttered, “what extra could you even throw in. I already have seven votes without you.”

“Izzy,” Heather simply said, a smile on her face. Courtney held out a hand for her to continue. What did that mean? “I’m going to try to get Izzy to vote with us. She’s crazy, so there’s no telling, but if you can control her? That’s an advantage. An advantage I want to share with you.”

Though Courtney had to admit that would be nice, she couldn’t let Heather know. A quick look to DJ told her he was visibly interested, but she wouldn’t be. “I don’t need that. I don’t want to owe you any favors.”

“DJ, Lindsay. What do you two think?” Heather asked, not letting Courtney’s reluctance deter her. She was on a mission, and she would succeed.

“I think…” DJ glanced at Courtney, “I think that’s very nice of you. And I think that I, personally, would appreciate it. Sorry, Court.”

Heather smiled, “thank you. Lindsay?”

Lindsay shrugged, “I dunno. I think it doesn’t really matter, but I know you want me to agree with you right now, so I think I should do that.”

Heather could have gone without Lindsay’s blatant apathy, but it still worked, “see, Court. We all think it’s a good idea. I am doing this for you. It’s not a favor, and I won’t expect anything in return except a name for the next vote and for you to actually consider giving both an alliance and a friendship a chance. I want to work with you. All three of you.”

“Fine. I still don’t understand why you want this so badly, but fine. I’ll give you a name, and I’ll consider working with you, but we will never be friends,” Courtney stood up from the table, “can I go now? Since we’ve reached an agreement and all?”

“Sure, if that’s what you call an agreement. I want to give you some advice first, though: don’t count me out. We want the same thing, and we would be powerful together.”

Courtney rolled her eyes, “Whatever, Heather. Bye. Lindsay, are you coming?”

Sending Heather an apologetic smile and jumping up from her seat, Lindsay nodded, and the pair left. DJ also left, wanting to try to cheer Geoff up. Heather didn’t care, though. She had gotten what she wanted. For now.

Nothing too exciting happened as the rest of the day passed. Most everyone knew how the vote was going to play out, and those who didn’t know for sure got the feeling it was one of them. As they waited, Gwen and Trent spent their first evening as a couple saying goodbye to each other. Leshawna was immune and everyone else avoided them. One of them was going.

It came time for the Marshmallow Ceremony, and, after casting their votes in the confessional, everyone met at the fire pit. Someone was about to be the next person eliminated. Gwen sat down between Trent and Leshawna and mentally prepared herself for the worst.

“Welcome to the first marshmallow ceremony of the merge!” Chris greeted, “I’m glad you all could make it. Not that you had a choice! Should I remind everyone of the rules?”

“What? That if we get voted off we can never come back, ever?” Gwen sarcastically asked, sharing an unamused look with Trent. They both wanted this over with. “We all know that’s crap.”

Chris laughed, “you got it! If you don’t receive a marshmallow you must go down to the Dock of Shame to take the Boat of Losers, and then you can never come back, ever. Unless I say you can. Let’s get started. On my plate I have eleven marshmallows, but there are twelve of you. Leshawna, since you have immunity and can’t be voted off, it’s only fitting you get the first marshmallow of the merge. Enjoy it!”

Leshawna smiled and stood up, offering a high five to Gwen on her way up. The goth took it, sincerely happy for her friend. If only all three of them could get a marshmallow.

The ceremony continued, and Gwen tried to concentrate on Trent’s hand in hers instead of Chris calling everyone else up. She couldn’t listen to the others, especially Heather, being safe when she or Trent weren’t.

“And Gwen!” Chris called, gaining her attention. She was safe. Which meant Trent wasn’t. Looking up, she found that there were only two marshmallows left on the plate. One was hers, and she assumed the last one belonged to Courtney. Her brand-new boyfriend was out, and she didn’t know if that was better or worse than being out herself. It would suck here without him. She wordlessly got up and collected her marshmallow.

“We have one marshmallows and two campers. Courtney, Trent. Both of you received votes, and one of you will be taking the Boat of Losers tonight!” Chris paused, building the suspense. Gwen kept her eyes on Trent and watched as the last of his resolve crumbled. Why did Chris have to drag this out?

“Courtney… Trent… one of you will be the eleventh? No thirteenth? It doesn’t matter, one of you will be the next person voted out of Total! Drama! Island!” Chris paused again. “The final marshmallow goes to… Courtney! Sorry, dude. You’re out. And right after you got a girlfriend.”

It was official. Trent nodded sadly and stood up, “I understand. At least I made it to the merge. Good game, everyone. Gwen, Leshawna, good luck. Have fun. Goodbye.”

After giving Chris and Chef a handshake, Trent started the trek to the Dock of Shame. While he was a good sport, if not a little sad, Gwen was mad. Why should they get to stay and not Trent? It wasn’t fair. Standing up, she spun around to everyone and opened her mouth. No words came out, however, her anger too strong. Instead, she just spun back around and followed Trent. She had to say goodbye to him.

“Trent, wait, don’t go yet!” Gwen called right before he was about to board the Boat of Losers. He turned to face her and let her come the rest of the way to him. “You shouldn’t have been voted out tonight. It’s not fair. You deserve to be here, not them.”

Trent grabbed her shoulder with one hand, “It’s okay. It’s just a game, and you have to win now. Don’t be mad.”

Gwen looked at the ground between them, “it’s not fair, though. They all suck, and you’re the only one who doesn’t. We just got together, too. It’s not fair.”

“I know. The timing kind of sucks, but everyone’s just trying to stay in the game. I drew the short straw tonight, but you have to keep fighting,” Trent’s hand moved to the base of her neck and he took a step closer, “you’re a winner, and you have to show all of them that.” Then, he leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. “I’m going to miss you, Gwen.” He pulled his hand away and got onto the boat.

“I’m going to miss you, too!” Gwen said, her fingers hovering over her cheek.

The boat started sailing away, and Gwen waved until she couldn’t see him anymore. What an awful night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was the second half of No Pain, No Game! I hope you enjoyed it! I have no timeline for Search and Do Not Destroy, but I have an outline of a story. Happy holidays to everyone.
> 
> As always, if you enjoyed this, please leave a comment or kudos. They mean so much to me, and I love reading about what you liked. If you want more total drama content or just want to chat, you can find me on tumblr at i-wish-i-was-kidding.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if you enjoyed it! I have through Basic Straining written, and I have the entire elimination order outlined. (All the way through All-Stars bc I cannot stop thinking about this AU.) Leave a comment or a kudos if you please. 
> 
> Also, please let me know if there were any terrible spelling/grammatical errors. I've been combing through this for months, but things are bound to slip through.


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